GIALLOROSSI YORKSHIRE BLOG
Roma put in a performance to remember against Chelsea a couple of weeks ago, and now it's time to do it all over again.
Following on from the entertaining visit to Stamford Bridge, Roma now play hosts to the London side in one of the most important games in recent memory. Having shown they could compete against the Premier League champions in the 3-3 draw, Roma now have to prove that that result was no fluke. Once again, for ninety minutes, Di Francesco's team will have to work extremely hard and make a good account of themselves. Chelsea are a tough opponent, but one that Roma will need to take points from if they are to have a good chance of getting out of the group stages. Here's what we learnt about them from the previous encounter. Form: Like Roma, Chelsea have recorded three successive wins since the last meeting between the two sides. However, unlike Roma, the Blues have conceded goals in that time. Watford put two past them, and they let in one against Everton. Nonetheless, they have outscored all three of their opponents, meaning they find themselves fourth in the English top flight. The Coach: Antonio Conte A name very familiar to fans of Italian football, Conte masterminded the national team to the quarter finals of Euro 2016, beyond all expectations. Since then, he has returned to club management, delivering the Premier League crown in his first season at Chelsea. A very passionate manager, Conte expends a lot of energy on the touchlines to help his team gain as many points as possible. Conte has most often utilised a back three with Chelsea and tomorrow should be no different. What remains to be seen is what will be fielded ahead of the centre backs - he usually opts for a 3-4-3, but played something closer to a 3-5-2 last time against Roma. The Key Player: Eden Hazard Left winger Hazard, on his day, is one of the best players in the Premier League. Since switching to a 3-4-3 early last season, Conte has been able to get the best out of his star man, who has been given the attacking freedom that he relishes. A tricky player to play against, he scored two very good goals against Roma a fortnight ago. The Familiar Face: Antonio Rudiger The German defender played for Roma in the previous two seasons and was a key member of the team's backline. Deployed mainly as a centre back during his time in Rome, but sometimes as a right back, Rudiger's athletic ability helps him mark the most dangerous of opponents. He made a brief cameo against his former club on 18th October, and Conte could turn to him again upon his return to Italy. Prediction: Chelsea have several world class players who can help their system operate efficiently, but Roma have big players too. It will need to be a step up from the last three performances on Roma's part, but who would complain if EDF's team could clinch another 1-0 win, this time against the group's top seed? Realistically, both teams will be expected to score, and it will be a difficult game - but Roma must try to match the levels they reached in the reverse fixture. After the performance in London, Roma can't be written off.
0 Comments
Saturday sees the visit of Bologna to the Stadio Olimpico, as Roma look to keep the pressure on the four sides currently ahead of them in the table. Bologna, meanwhile, lie in 11th place at present, with four wins, four losses and two draws to their name. What can Eusebio Di Francesco's men expect from their opponents?
Form: As suggested by their league standing, Bologna are having a fairly balanced season so far. They have lost their previous two games, against Lazio and Atalanta, but won three on the bounce before that. Critically, they have failed to score more than one goal in five of their last six matches, a 2-1 win over Spal being the exception. This is clearly something that they will be hoping to improve upon if they are to have any serious ambitions for the year. The Coach: Roberto Donadoni Tomorrow will mark the second anniversary of the former Milan midfielder's appointment at Bologna. It is his second longest spell as a coach, having lasted 141 matches in his previous job at Parma. The 54-year-old has done a relatively good job at the club, achieving a 14th placed finish in their first season back in the top flight, and leading them to 15th last season. So, it has been a process of stabilisation in Serie A for his team, and he is helping them to achieve this. Like Di Francesco, he favours a 4-3-3 formation. The Key Player: Simone Verdi One player who will be hoping to have an impact for the visitors tomorrow is Simone Verdi. The winger - who made his Italy debut this year - has got one goal and one assist in ten appearances so far. He will aim to get at Roma's defence using his dribbling; he has been successful in 63.64% of his take-ons this season. The Familiar Face: Mattia Destro Returning to the Olimpico will be former Roma striker Mattia Destro. Destro never really got as much game time in the capital as he would have liked, despite having a good goals-to-game ratio. Joining Bologna in 2015, he has gone on to score 19 goals for his new side, and will be eager to prove a point against the club that sold him. Also on Bologna's books is ex-Roma full back Vasilis Torosidis, who unfortunately will be injured for the game. Prediction: Roma need a confidence boost after successive 1-0 wins, with both goals coming from dead balls. They will be hoping to find the net more easily against Bologna, so they can enter the crucial midweek Champions League clash with Chelsea in buoyant fashion. It won't necessarily be easy for Roma, but they should be disappointed if they fail to produce a victory. It wasn't a pretty game of football, but Roma came back from Turin with three more points under their belts after a 1-0 victory over Torino.
Neithe let goalkeeper had a busy afternoon, as few chances were created by either side. An Aleksandar Kolarov free kick proved to be the difference between the two sides, and his goal extends Roma's winning away run to eleven games, a club record. How did each player perform on their return to domestic duties? Alisson Becker - 6 There wasn't much for the Brazilian shotstopper to do, as whenever Torino ventured forward, Sadiq Umar was caught offside. The striker was eager to impress against his parent club, but maybe a bit too much, resulting in a quieter day for Alisson. He was booked near the end for timewasting. Alessandro Florenzi - 7 Returning to the right back role after recently featuring on the wings, Florenzi looked to get involved going forward, as expected. He nearly caught Salvatore Sirigu off guard with a long range effort from wide - whether or not it was intended as a shot, only he will know. Juan Jesus - 7 Jesus was a little tidier than he was against Chelsea, and is rated seven out of ten here because he was forced to play on the right-hand side of a centre back partnership, despite being left-footed. He helped sniff out any danger from Torino's attack. Hector Moreno - 6 A steady full Serie A debut for Moreno, if nothing extraordinary. It will have been good for him to get minutes under his belt. Aleksandar Kolarov - 7 Yet again, Kolarov impressed for his side, and came up with the all-important goal to settle the match. He is proving to be a really good purchase and a big player for this team. His free kick was his second goal of the week after netting against Chelsea on Wednesday. Daniele De Rossi - 6 Wasn't overly noticeable, but seemed to take steps back towards being his reliable self, after being at fault for the Napoli loss last week. Could have maybe offered more in terms of inciting attacks, but didn't do too much wrong. Lorenzo Pellegrini - 6 Perhaps unfortunate to be the first player substituted, Pellegrini is doing quite well right now. He will have better games than this one, but he still put in a good performance. Kevin Strootman - 6 Wasn't decisive enough in the final third. He could have had a goal, but put the ball wide from a corner at the far post. Radja Nainggolan - 5 Maybe the rating of 5 is a little bit harsh, but Nainggolan just didn't offer enough. He played in a more advanced position, but failed to make meaningful contributions to attacks. One of his efforts went wildly off target. It seems that this season, as in this match, his value to the team will relate more to defending than attacking, unlike last year. Stephan El Shaarawy - 6 Looked lively in patches, but disappeared slightly in the second half. It was a performance that he can build on, and perhaps his dip towards the end of his appearance was more to do with fitness. Edin Dzeko - 5 Didn't really get a sniff, in stark contrast to his world class showing in midweek. Perhaps he didn't get the service he needed. He will be eager to get back on the scoresheet next time out. Substitutes Cengiz Under - Was decent on the ball but his shots lacked conviction and power. At least he showed confidence to take people on and have a go. Diego Perotti - Helped the team to keep possession of the ball in the closing stages. Bruno Peres - Replaced Florenzi and made a couple of clearances, as well as getting a shot away. Not a bad cameo for an often-criticised player, but very brief. The Conclusion It appears that travelling for two away games in a week - one of which was out of the country - has taken its toll on Roma, despite the five changes to the starting line up. The next couple of games should be good for the team to regroup and rebuild confidence before the return fixture against Chelsea. Looking through a purely objective lens, only a small portion of Roma fans would have entered Wednesday's Champions League clash with Chelsea expecting to get a result.
Roma had come off the back of a lacklustre performance against Serie A leaders Napoli, and whilst Chelsea too had lost their previous game, their status as Premier League champions suggested they were a force to be reckoned with. Despite doubts, striker Alvaro Morata did start for the London side, which, on paper, further complicated the evening for the Giallorossi. However, the Roma that turned up on the night looked like a completely different outfit from the side that had fallen so feebly to Napoli. Despite only making three changes to the starting line up, Eusebio Di Francesco managed to get his players performing with confidence and self-belief. The outcome was a game that was probably Roma's best performance since he took charge. Against Napoli, Roma had been happy to play without the ball, aware that excessive pressing would have created spaces for their opponents to exploit, as they have done so efficiently during the Maurizio Sarri era. However, whilst the gameplan worked to some extent (Napoli's winning goal came from an uncharacteristic individual error from Daniele De Rossi, which cannot be accounted for and is certainly not the responsibility of the coach) too many of the team's big players didn't show up for the occasion. There wasn't enough adventure, and nowhere near enough quality. Napoli deserved the win. Wednesday's outing, meanwhile, couldn't have been more different. Rather than being reserved, Roma took the game to their hosts. Dominating possession and going forward as often as possible - Diego Perotti was a particular problem for Chelsea's right hand side, but sadly couldn't get a goal to cap off his display - Roma were unlucky not to come away with the win. Emotions were high when Edin Dzeko scored his second goal to put Roma in the lead - but unfortunately they came crashing down when Eden Hazard scored an equally good header to put the scores level again. Nevertheless, Roma could come away from the UK knowing they had put in a performance they could be proud of, and that the point gained is very healthy for their standing in the group. If there is anything to be learnt from Wednesday's 3-3 draw, it is that we now know what this Roma side are capable of. The better side against the reigning Premier League champions, they will now look to carry that kind of performance over to the league. There should be no opponents in Serie A that Roma ought to fear any more; instead, they must play each and every game on the front foot, and always look to pick up maximum points. Roma's return to the domestic scene will not be easy, with Torino being Sunday's opponents. They are a good side, but Roma must try to emulate the kind of display they put on in midweek. After the disappointment suffered last time out in the league, it is important that they get back to winning ways and make a statement to their Serie A competitors. 5th is not a bad position to be in at this stage of the season, a solid foundation for the team to build on. With two home games versus Crotone and Bologna following the Torino match, it is certainly a time to start putting together a good run of form. If Roma can replicate the Chelsea performance in the biggest games in the league this season, then Di Francesco will have overcome his critics, and his side will have shown that they can in fact be Scudetto contenders. Roma have had an unwanted, but frequent, association with ligament injuries over the last couple of years. The injuries have always seemed to strike the affected players at the worst possible times too. However, now two of those players are returning from their setbacks with a great something to offer the team.
Alessandro Florenzi and Emerson Palmieri have proven to be popular players among the Roma faithful. Florenzi is adored for his Roman heritage and his passion for the club he represents, whilst Emerson found a place in his supporters' hearts through an excellent 2016/17 season, in which he took the footballing world by surprise and showed himself to be a top level left back. However, just as both were approaching the peak of their powers, disaster struck. Florenzi was establishing himself as one of the hottest properties in world football, thanks to his versatility and technique. His unforgettable long-distance goal against Barcelona in the Champions League two seasons ago alerted the world to his star quality, and he continued to impress for the remainder of that term. His rise was set to continue even further in 2016/17, until an ACL injury put him on the sidelines for the majority of the season. Picking up the injury in an October clash with Sassuolo, he would play no further part in that campaign, as his injury recurred just as he was in training to return. During the time Florenzi missed on the pitch, his counterpart Emerson was establishing himself as one of the best left backs in Serie A. Emerson had a sensational season, playing either as a wing back in a 3-4-2-1 or as a full back in a 4-2-3-1. After a breakout campaign, and with age on his side, Emerson had revealed his potential to the world. But again, injury came at the cruellest time. In the final game of the season in which he had shone, he had to be replaced, with scans revealing he too had damaged his ACL. It came at a costly time, given that he had just switched allegiance to Italy, and was set to receive his first international call up. The injury meant he missed the important first pre-season under new head coach Eusebio Di Francesco, and the club bought a new left back (to replace the departing Mario Rui) in the shape of Aleksandar Kolarov. The Serbian has hit the ground running at his new club, meaning a return for Emerson could be less straight forward than he would have first imagined. However, the ability of Kolarov will benefit Emerson greatly. He will be able to learn from his teammate's vast experience, and won't need to be rushed back into the frame as he makes his comeback. This will be good for Emerson, as it will reduce the pressure on him and make his return more comfortable. Fortunately, we have reached the time where both men are making their returns. Florenzi has impressed since returning to the pitch, playing as either a right back or a right winger. Whilst still not 100% match fit, he has made important contributions to the team. For example, his left-footed cross to assist Edin Dzeko's goal against Verona - in his first league game since his comeback - was sublime. Florenzi's return certainly means a lot for Roma. Now vice-captain of the team, he provides another leadership option on the pitch. His constant effort is a major benefit to the team, as he works hard to help the team either regain possession, or create good chances when they do have the ball. Pre-injury, he was swiftly growing into a symbol of Roma, and now that he is back, he will be ready to continue the growth of that reputation. Emerson too will make a big difference once fully fit. This week, he has begun training with the Primavera, as his recovery enters an important stage. Over the next few weeks he will work hard on strengthening his body and regaining technique, before he will be able to return to the playing field. Once he is ready to play with the first team again, he will be a valuable member of the squad, just as he was in the previous campaign. Whilst Kolarov has impressed so far, he is starting to look a little tired, having started (and finished) every game. Kolarov's performances have made it difficult to decide who will be first choice when both are at full fitness, but at this stage, Emerson will provide a very good option to allow his teammate to rest. Further down the line, he will be ready to pose some serious questions to his head coach regarding selection. Florenzi and Emerson are two players that will have a big impact on the future of Roma, and it is important that the team makes good use of them. Recovery from injury is always a slow process, but when they are both fully fit, they are two great footballers, and ones that will help Roma achieve success this year. |
samuel bannister
Founder and editor of Giallorossi Yorkshire, who is also a columnist for Roma's official website about the women's team. Categories
All
Archives
October 2019
|