Trying to figure out this AS Roma side is difficult, infuriating and messy -- like a painting made of some colours that are beautiful, some that are ugly and some that you've never seen before.
The side's 1-1 draw at home against Atalanta on Sunday was a missed opportunity to leapfrog over Lazio and back into second place, especially given their crosstown rivals' loss to Juventus earlier in the weekend. The opportunity was there, the team knew it, and they failed to take advantage of it.
The result was as familiar as the tale of the game. The match's opening suggested maybe Roma had found some semblance of swagger. Adem Ljajic won a penalty Francesco Totti converted within the opening five minutes to propel the side into the lead. Buoyed with confidence, the team continued to push forward and create half-chances, though they rarely amounted to full ones.
Young Marco Sportiello had a superb game in goal for the visitors, who took heart from Roma's failing to add to their one-goal advantage. Midway through the first half, Davide Astori committed a foul in the box in Atalanta's only real chance of the match. German Denis converted, leaving Roma to toil and toil to no avail, until the game eventually ended.
That the fans are reaching a breaking point is becoming undeniable. Whistles rained down at Juan Iturbe when substituted, as the ultras displayed their disappointment with the impact he has made on the pitch. Whether he fits into this Roma side is a discussion that needs to be had away from the jeers of the fans, who clearly expect more from the team's most expensive signing in a decade.
On the other hand, there was nothing but applause for Seydou Keita, who came on as a late substitute and looked as assured as ever. He was one of three players who escaped the match without scorn, as Alessandro Florenzi ran tirelessly and put in an exceptional shift driving from one wing to another and Radja Nainggolan was his usual, irreplaceable self. The oft criticised Victor Ibarbo did arguably more in his short time on the pitch than many of the starters. Everyone else, however, looked short of confidence and without much of a plan, and even Totti and Ljajic faded after their bright start.
If all of the above sounds familiar, it's because it is; it has become a running pattern for Roma in the second half of the season. The lead to Lazio might have been cut, thanks to their loss, but Napoli's win means third place is just five points behind Roma now. With 21 points left to gain this season, Champions League football is no guarantee, which would be nothing short of disastrous for
a side with the ambitions and financial need Roma have.
Answers to the underlying question -- 'Where did this all go so wrong?' -- are varied and incomplete. Was the Bayern Munich home thrashing in the Champions League the reason? Was it relying too much on an aging core of veterans, such as Francesco Totti and Douglas Maicon? Has the team lost its foundation without Leandro Castan and Mehdi Benatia? Were the club's actions in the summer transfer window really that ineffective?
Yes to all of these, which only reveals how messy and tangled Roma's season is. There is much work to be done in the offseason, but without Champions League football, the immediate future of the club is in a very delicate position. All this in a year the team looked poised to compete for the title.
No comments:
Post a Comment