AS Roma threw away a golden opportunity to move closer to the summit of the Serie A table as they drew 1-1 at Torino.
The Giallorossi thought they had won it when an unusual Miralem Pjanic free kick found its way into the net with just five minutes left. In the 94th minute, however, Roma gave away a penalty which former Barcelona forward Maxi Lopez slotted home to deny Rudi Garcia and his men a much needed win.
Agony for Roma
The trip to Torino was not the first time this season that Roma had been denied all three points late on in a game. On matchday three of the Champions League, German side Bayer Leverkusen scored twice in the last 10 minutes to extend Roma’s five-year wait for an away win in Europe’s premier competition. But the result against Torino will hurt even more, especially considering the injury picked up by star winger Gervinho. The Ivorian international was making his comeback from a four-week lay-off and for him to be forced off after just 25 minutes is a big setback for Roma. Yet it is the manner of the defeat which will hurt Roma fans most. To score the opener with less than 10 minutes to go on and still not win is inexcusable. The win would have been the Giallorossi‘s first since beating city rivals Lazio in early November. Instead, the crisis at Roma grows deeper and deeper.
Individual errors
Roma’s defence has been poor all season; two clean sheets in all competitions tells its own story. Yet it has been individual mistakes in recent weeks which have cost Roma so dearly. In their last three Serie A matches, Roma have conceded three penalties late on in each of the games. Spot kicks are given away by individuals not coaches, and the players have to take responsibility for their errors. Against Bologna and Atalanta it was Vasilis Torosidis and Maicon who gave away penalties. This week it was their fellow defender Kostas Manolas who was at fault. Midfielder Radja Nainggolan said after the game: “our defence was great and it would have been a good performance without the penalty.” The Belgium international was right. It is individuals errors which are costing Roma valuable points in the Serie A title race.
Fans beginning to show unrest
Italian fans are renowned for letting their players and coaches know their displeasure when they believe things are not going well. Following in that tradition, the Roma ultras had a special delivery for Rudi Garcia and his men during training this week. They left 50 kilograms of carrots at the training ground, with a message saying “Enjoy your meal rabbits!” – the Italian word for rabbit, coniglio, is often used to describe a coward. It is clear what the Roma fans think of their own players. However, much of their anger is directed at coach Garcia. With the title race so open this season and the Giallorossi playing second fiddle to a dominant Juventus in the past two years, it feels like Roma are letting their big chance of winning Serie A slip away. Garcia talked up their Scudetto chances at the start of the season but his words have fallen flat. Should Roma fail to beat BATE Borisov at home in midweek and thus not progress to the knockout stages, the Frenchman may well be out of a job.
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