After a tricky contest AS Roma overcame Empoli 3-1 to put more pressure on the teams above them on the Serie A ladder.
An Stephan El Shaarawy brace and a Miralem Pjanic effort fired the Giallorossi to the three points, after a Ervin Zukanovic own goal had handed Empoli an equaliser mid-way through the second half.
The result moves Roma up to third, ahead of Inter travelling to Juventus and Fiorentina hosting Napoli later on in the weekend, in the race for a top three finish and Champions League football qualification for next season.
POPULAR ARTICLES
Top 5 – Players to play for both Juventus and Inter Milan
Pogba keen on La Liga, not Chelsea or Manchester City: Reports
Three keys for an Inter Milan upset against Juventus this weekend
El Shaarawy on Fire
When the Italian international joined Roma on loan in January many fans had doubts. El Shaarawy had showed glimpses of his immense potential while at AC Milan, but injuries and an awful loan spell at French side Monaco earlier in the season has dented the young winger’s stock in Italy. Coming back to Serie A was a big move relatively earlier in his career as, El Shaarawy looks to re-establish himself and hopefully earn a place in Antonio Conte’s Italy squad for Euro 2016 in the summer.
His move to the Italian capital is certainly doing the trick. It is now four goals for the Giallorossi since his switch in January and the first against Empoli was a beauty, curling into the far corner. It is not just in attack where El Shaarawy is earning praise though, the 23-year-old is also one of the most hard working wingers in the game and is often a defensive winger when his team dont have the ball. When El Shaarawy first broke onto the scene at Milan he scored 16 goals in 37 games as a teenager. While he has only been at Roma for a matter of weeks, he is showing signs that a return to his best is not far off. The Giallorossi will be glad they took the gamble on him.
https://youtu.be/N8Wagdu-des
Szczesny in trouble again
The Polish goalkeeper joined Roma from English side Arsenal on loan in the summer. He did not endure the best start, with some questionable displays and off-field antics, including a declaration of his desire to go back to his parent club casting an early shadow over his early days in the capital. After the 6-1 defeat against Barcelona in the Champions League group stage at the Nou Camp, Szczesny claimed he enjoyed the match. Thus the relationship he has with the Roma fans is not on the best of terms.
He has on occasions, notably in the 0-0 draw against Bate Borisov which assured the side of their place in the last 16 of the Champions League, performed well. But he has been too inconsistent. Against Empoli he dealt horribly with a fairly routine cross and punched the ball into his teammate Zukanovic, gifting the hosts their equaliser and a way back into the game. With the exceptional form of summer signing Petr Cech in North London, it is clear that Szczesny’s short and medium-term future is not as No.1 at the Emirates. He is also not pulling up any trees at Roma. It remains to be seen whether the Giallorossi will keep faith with him and thus if the Polish shot-stopper will be at the club next season.
Reassessing goals
When Luciano Spalletti rejoined Roma earlier in the calendar year the plan was all about stabilising the club, yet now they have won their last six games in Serie A and are the in-form team in Italy. The Giallorossi have a real chance of qualifying for the Champions League, something which was unthinkable a matter of weeks ago. They could even challenge Napoli for second place should the Partenopei continue their dip in form following their defeat to Juventus and they elimination from the Europa League.
Empoli also may need to rethink their objectives. After being the surprise team in the first-half of the season and spending much of the campaign in the top six, they have faded away. It is now just one win in 10 games in 2016 for the Azzurri, however, they are still in the top-half of the table. Given the club run on one of the smallest budgets in Serie A, avoiding relegation is an achievement which will be for a side that only got promoted to the top-flight last season.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
