Five key moments from our Europa League run

On Thursday, with kick-off set for 21:00 CEST, the Giallorossi will run out at Old Trafford, looking to reach a first European final in 30 years.

Manchester United will be the opposition, the Premier League side also looking to progress to the showpiece of a competition they won back in 2017.

Before we look ahead, however, it is always worth looking at where we have come from.

Here are five key moments in the competition, on our path to the semi-finals...

1. The comeback in Bern

Our Europa League run could easily have got off on the wrong footing.

In late October, as our campaign got underway against Young Boys in Bern, Paulo Fonseca's side soon found themselves behind on the synthetic turf of the Wankdorf Stadion - a penalty leaving them with work to do at the interval.

An away defeat to perhaps the sternest opposition in Group A would not have been the way to begin (especially given the Giallorossi would follow this up with a staid 0-0 home draw against CSKA Sofia). Instead they roared back to win, as Bruno Peres found the equaliser after a clever Edin Dzeko pass and then Marash Kumbulla headed home from a brilliant Henrikh Mkhitaryan ball.

Despite that Matchday 2 draw the team went on to secure qualification for the last-16 with two matches to spare - and then top spot (and top seeding) from Group A with a second win over Young Boys on Matchday 5.

2. Conviction in Braga

For the knockout stages of the competition, the pots in Nyon decided to send Fonseca back to his former stomping grounds - starting with Portuguese side Sporting Braga.

But instead it was his players who all looked like they were on familiar territory, as they turned what appeared on paper to be a difficult tie into something of a procession, thanks to a dominant display in the first leg in Portugal.

With Dzeko having opened the scoring - and secured an away goal - early on, the key moment came much later, as Borja Mayoral rounded off a sublime team move to put on target and give the side a two-goal advantage to return home with.

From that point, the Giallorossi always looked to have one foot in the last-16 of the competition.

3. Demolishing Shakhtar Donetsk

When the next draw threw out the name of Shakhtar Donetsk, few expected anything to be straightforward for Roma.

Fonseca had been in the opposition dugout the last time the two sides met, three years earlier in the last-16 of the Champions League, and on that occasion it took away goals for the Giallorossi to sneak through.

This time the Ukranians arrived having beaten Real Madrid twice and drawn with Inter Milan twice earlier in the season in the Champions League, a reminder of their enduring quality.

Instead, however, Roma overwhelmed their opponents in another decisive first leg performance, this time at the Olimpico. By the time Stephan El Shaarawy scored the first goal of his second spell at the club it was 2-0 to the hosts, and a Gianluca Mancini header soon after eventually confirmed a 3-0 scoreline.

With that advantage in their pockets, the subsequent trip to Ukraine was far less intimidating.

4. Pau Lopez stops Tadic short

Every campaign of this nature always has at least one moment where everything seems to be quickly slipping away. For Roma, the first such moment arrived in the Johan Cruyff Arena at the start of this month.

If the loss of Leonardo Spinazzola (up to then the game's standout performer) to injury after 29 minutes was not bad enough, then the concession of a soft goal to Davy Klaassen 10 minutes later was certainly problematic.

Then, shortly after the restart, a conceded penalty had Giallorossi fans staring into the abyss.

Pau Lopez had never saved a penalty in Roma colours before - but he chose the perfect time to change that unfortunate record, as he stood tall to parry away Dusan Tadic's effort and ensure the deficit remained at just one goal.

When Lorenzo Pellegrini then squeezed home a free-kick a few minutes later, that intervention looked all the more important. From potentially 2-0 down to being on level terms and with an away goal to our credit, the momentum shift was tangible.

It was perhaps little surprise then when a third unlikely event happened: Roger Ibanez, the man who had conceded that earlier penalty, suddenly turning into prime Zinedine Zidane as he controlled and lashed home a last-minute volleyed winner.

Roma would still have much to do in the second leg, but their chances had been enhanced greatly by an unpredictable second half.

5. Roars at the Olimpico

From fear to joy in a few instants.

If the first leg had been a rollercoaster for the Roma faithful, then the second leg was every bit as bad.

Ajax needed to score at least twice to progress, but they got the first of those goals just moments into the second half as Bryan Brobbey steered home from close range.

Seven minutes later they looked to have put themselves ahead, both on the night and in the tie.

Tadic was once again the man at the centre of the action, finishing off coolly and then celebrating wildly. Roma looked down and, perhaps, out - only for VAR to save them, spotting a foul on Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the build-up.

That let-up re-energised the home side, and soon after it was roars of delight that were ringing around the Olimpico - as Edin Dzeko cleaned up after Riccardo Calafiori had made a lung-busting run to restore Roma's advantage in the tie.

Even another goal for the Dutch side would only be enough to force extra-time, and that added sense of security seemed to be enough to carry the side through.

A third European semi-final in as many years was signed and sealed.