In the Italian capital, Roma reigns for a few days after its victory in the derby against Lazio (2-0), even if it remains far behind in the league standings. Claudio Ranieri’s team began to press intensely from the start, taking an early lead which they were able to maintain, buoyed by the ambitions of their supporters, the Wolves.
In the 10th minute, captain Pellegrini opened the scoring with a curling shot from outside the area that Provedel managed to touch but was unable to prevent it from entering the goal. The action was started by Dovbyk and Dybala, both of whom were also instrumental in the second goal.
Just ten minutes later, Ranieri’s defining Roma goal arrived. A long ball from Svilar, a deflection from Dovbyk, a run from Dybala, and a pass to Saelemaekers arriving from the right who fired in stride. Provedel made the save but couldn’t prevent the rebound from ending up in the back of the net (18′). The rest of the first half was marked by attempts from Fisayo Dele, the frustration of a combative Taty, and a shower of cards from referee Pairetto.
The second half was a different story, as Lazio came out flying with plenty of chances to close the gap. However, thanks to incredible saves from Svilar and blocks from Hummels, Ndicka and Mancini, the goal eluded them.
Roma then began to play a different type of football, with the match becoming rather chaotic to the point where it would have been miraculous for the match to end with only ten players on the pitch. Paredes excelled in this chaos, confronting opponents and provoking reactions. Boulaye Dia responded similarly to what Vini did in Valencia, but this time resulted in a yellow card instead of a red.
In added time, the inevitable happened: a violent scuffle broke out between the players and the technical staff, leading to a red card for Castellanos. If the situation had been analyzed in detail, several other players could also have been sent off. Hummels brought the crowd to their feet in what was his best performance in Italy so far. A real exhibition on his part.
