Ahead of Roma's 1-0 win over Napoli at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, Rudi Garcia's men were a team in serious trouble.
They had not won at home since Nov. 30, 2014 (a 4-2 win over Inter.) That was a stretch of 125 days; seven winless Serie A matches; five matches in other competitions and a run of 12 games in which they only won once -- an embarrassing extra-time win against Empoli in the Coppa Italia from a goal that probably should not have stood.
They were a team who saw their title ambitions slip to Europa League ambitions and then slip further to just Coppa Italia ambitions -- all while watching the gap between first and second grow ever larger with their lead over third place shrinking ever more.
They were a team that were teetering dangerously close to a full-blown crisis, risking automatic Champions League qualification at the very least and maybe their ability to finish in the top three at the worst.
Then, in the 25th minute against Napoli, Juan Iturbe took on three men down the middle of the pitch and slotted the ball wide to Alessandro Florenzi, who looked up, saw Miralem Pjanic's run into the middle and played it back in the box. The Bosnian sliced the shot into the net to score his first goal since November's win over Inter. Fittingly, it propelled Roma to their first league win at home since that day, too.
Pjanic noted after the match that his celebration was out of anger against those who have criticised his form this season. The look in Iturbe's eyes as he celebrated with his teammates following the strike suggested the Argentine might be feeling similarly.
Neither player has really lived up to the standards they set last season and part of Iturbe's entourage suggested the fault lied with a Roma management who have not shown faith in their young player. It turned out that Roma just needed both players to play with some semblance of form up front to take over striking duties on a day that Francesco Totti couldn't feature through injury and Seydou Doumbia was benched.
At the back, two pillars kept the side together. Kostas Manolas put in another superb showing to add to the burgeoning number he's already displayed this season. He was brought in to replace Medhi Benatia when he left for Bayern Munich and the comparison is begging to be made but the Moroccan is older, more experienced and a better defender. The Greek is getting there, slowly and surely. He is perhaps less able at reading the game but is incredibly adept at reacting to it.
In fairness to him, he needs to react more than Benatia ever did because so much of the defence around him is often so terrible and the midfield offers him little help. Luckily against Napoli his speed and reflexes were something else as he demonstrated with several world-class slide tackles. Gonzalo Higuain temporarily changed his address to the centre-back's back pocket.
The second pillar was the one most active at the very end of the match, Morgan De Sanctis. Like Iturbe and Pjanic, the goalkeeper has too often failed to play at the level he was capable of last season. But perhaps playing against his old side lit a fire in him, motivating him to prove to his former teammates that he still has more to give, as his contribution was vital.
De Sanctis made several gravity-defying saves to ensure the visitors didn't sneak a late equaliser and they ultimately helped the side to secure an important three points.
After such a long time without a home win, breaking their drought could be even more important. The boost in morale should fire up the capital club as the season comes to a close but they must forget about last season and concentrate on ending on a high.
Benatia is gone, Manolas is here; Pjanic, Iturbe, and De Sanctis are not the same players but they will do everything in their power to make sure that the rest of the campaign is not as disappointing as the last few months.
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