Despite the appointment of new coach Luciano Spalletti, AS Roma continued their poor form with a 1-1 draw at home to a winless Hellas Verona.
The Giallorossi got off to a great start ,with Radja Nainggolan opening the scoring in the first-half. The home side could not, however, hold on for the three points as Verona hit back through a Giampaolo Pazzini penalty. The result leaves Roma in fifth place, five points off a Champions League spot.
No quick fix for Spalletti
Luciano Spalletti returned to Roma this week with great fanfare. A popular choice to replace Rudi Garcia among the Giallorossi faithful who remember his first spell at the club fondly, there was a sense of enthusiasm around the Stadio Olimpico which had been missing in recent months. The disappointing draw against Verona, who have failed to register a win all season, will dampen spirits in the Italian capital. Spalletti said during the week that he wanted to build a team that plays good, attacking and exciting football.
On the basis of the Verona game, the former Zenit Saint-Petersburg coach has some way to go. In a new 4-2-3-1 system, Daniele De Rossi and surprisingly, Miralem Pjanic, were the two holding-midfielders. Pjanic seemed suited to his role as a deep-lying playmaker, but overall Roma’s attacking was not at its sharpest. Too many balls failed to find feet and it at times the squad looked disjointed. For large parts of the game Roma’s defence looked solid, yet Leandro Castan needlessly fouled Pawel Wszolek to give Verona a lifeline. Once again an individual error at the back cost the Giallorossi, a worrying trend this season. Spalletti has much work to do ahead to fix this Roma side.
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Fan reactions change for Dzeko
Edin Dzeko was greeted by thousands of delirious Roma fans at the airport when he joined the club in the summer. The No.9 Roma had been crying out for, the faithful thought he could fire them to the title. The Bosnian made a good start, scoring in home wins against Juventus and arch rivals Lazio, yet since then he has faltered. A return of just five goals in all competitions this season tells its own story. Dzeko had a couple of chances in the Verona game, but failed to find the back of the net and every time the Bosnian misfired, he was met with a chorus of boos from the home fans.
After the match, teammates Pjanic, who also plays with Dzeko for Bosnia, and Alessandro Florenzi rushed to the defences of the former Manchester City man. Yet in reality it is only Dzeko who can silenced the critics. The striker undoubtedly has the talent to start scoring again and help Roma refind their form. If he can do that, it will be cheers not boos ringing out from the Stadio Olimpico for the Bosnian.
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Light at the end of the tunnel for Verona
When Verona came to the Stadio Olimpico they had not won all season. As they boarded the bus after the game, they had still failed to record a victory but there were signs during the match that things maybe looking up for the Gialloblu. Gigi Delneri’s side looked more compact than in recent weeks and were able to carve out some opportunities during the game. With a forward of the calibre of Giampaolo Pazzini in their side they will always have a chance of getting a goal and snatching a result.
Even with the point against Roma, Verona are still rooted to the bottom of Serie A with just nine points from 20 games. 12 points away from safety, they would need a miracle to stay up. Yet if they keep on performing like they did at the Olimpico then they will surely secure a win before the end of the campaign and not create some unwanted history.
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