AS Roma
Wojciech Szczesny – 7: Had a commanding game in the Roma goal and looks to be flourishing away from Arsenal. Lucky not to give away a penalty for a clear trip on Suarez in the first half, but then Suarez got his own back with a clear triple kick on Szczesny’s hands that saw the keeper have to be substituted on 50 minutes.
Alessandro Florenzi – 9: The goal alone earns Florenzi at least an eight rating, but he was also excellent in defence against a threatening Barca attack and dealt well with the dangerous Neymar despite not being a recognised full-back.
Antonio Rudiger – 8: Had a solid game in the Roma defence, showed good speed and good reading of the game to nullify the Barca attack.
Kostas Manolas – 9: Looked a class act at the heart of the Roma backline, marshalling the defence expertly with the exception of losing track of Suarez for the opening goal of the game.
Lucas Digne – 5: Looked a little unconvincing, especially when Lionel Messi managed to get himself into the game, but the full-back was usually well supported by the rest of the superb Roma defence. Digne was at fault for the Barca opener, stepping out into no-man’s land to leave Rakitic the freedom of the penalty area to pick out Suarez.
Seydou Keita – 5: Looked a little unconvincing in the middle of the midfield, and often struggled to keep track of Messi – which is hardly surprising. Could have helped out his defence better, particularly in providing support to Digne in picking up Messi.
Radja Nainggolan – 6: Was his usual battling, scary self in the centre of midfield, typified by the dangerous lunge from behind that saw Rafinha injured. Offered litle going forwards and was often wasteful in possession, but that is not why he is in the side against Barca.
Daniele De Rossi – 8: De Rossi was absolutely superb, putting in an archetypal battling, hard tackling midfield performance. He completely ran the show against the usually dangerous Andres Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic.
Mohamed Salah – 5: Salah looked very much like the player we saw, briefly, at Chelsea – plenty of threat and pace down the wing, but he lacks a final ball. His pace really troubled Barca at times but his passing and crossing was very poor, which is unacceptable when you are playing with a big target man.
Iago Falque – 7: The little Spaniard showed Tottenham fans what they are missing out on as he put on an excellent performance against the Champions League holders. While he struggled to create, his work ethic and willingness to track Sergi Roberto down the wing was impressive, on his first Champions League start.
Edin Dzeko – 6: Lacked support and figured very little. Roma will have to learn to play to Dzeko’s strengths, which probably means a tweak in their tactics.
Substitutes
Morgan De Sanctis – 7: Kept a clean sheet in his 40 minutes against the fearsome Barcelona attack, making several important saves to keep his side in the game.
Vasilis Torosidis -N/A: Came on with five minutes remaining to sure up the right side of the Roma defence.
Juan Iturbe – N/A: Replaced the tiring Falque with eight minutes to go and did little other than fouling Sergi Roberto.
Florenzi: “I honestly didn’t know how to celebrate. I just put my hands over my face.” http://t.co/wphdNcvzch #UCL pic.twitter.com/ZFqTlrkhZR — Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 17, 2015
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