If you listened to the commentary during yesterday’s match without knowing who the opponent was, you might not have noticed any difference. Roma’s 1-1 draw with Atalanta was more of the same for Roma; another disappointing performance against one of Italy’s top teams. That’s not to dismiss their effort—they fired 18 shots on goal, after all, and were a miracle Marco Carnesecchi performance away from at least a 2-1 win—but for the umpteenth time this season, the Giallorossi came up short when it mattered
most.
Through 33 matches, Roma has managed only one victory against the clubs currently in the top seven. No matter how you slice it, that simply won’t cut it. And with Gian Piero Gasperini now giving ambiguous answers to questions about his future, Trigoria is about to become a hotbed of speculation, rumors, and hearsay. Though, to be fair to Gasp, those questions about his job security are a bit premature, to say the least.
As with most 1-1 draws, it can be difficult to separate the sinners from the saints, but we’re going to give it the old college try!
The Sinners
Neil El Aynaoui
A player who can’t crack Gasperini’s lineup rotation yet is somehow linked to some of the biggest clubs in the world, says more about the nature of football journalism than it does the quality of the player or the clubs in question. Still, El Aynaoui, who made only his sixth start of the season yesterday, did little to bolster his case for more playing time in Rome.
In 60 minutes, El Aynaoui was Roma’s lowest-rated outfield player across multiple sites, struggling to make an impact in the midfield, particularly defensively, where he won only one of nine duels, made one defensive action, and committed an error that led to a shot on goal.
Nevertheless, you can see his potential and how he might fit in with Gasperini, so let’s hope this pairing makes it to next season.
Mile Svilar
As with all things goalkeeping, the stats cut deeper simply because there are fewer of them. In this case, the paucity of data doesn’t paint a pretty picture of Svilar. While the Roma defense did well to limit the quality and quantity of Atalanta’s chances (eight shots, only two on target), Svilar came up short, conceding one goal against 0.44 xGOT.
The Saints
Mario Hermoso
The Spanish center-back overcame a sloppy start to the match, finishing with one of his finest performances of the season. In 90 minutes, Hermoso had two shots on target, including a lovely volley in the 45th minute to level the match, and took a game-high five touches in the opponent’s box. He also played nine balls into the final third, contributed six defensive actions, and made seven recoveries.
And that’s really about it; Hermoso was Roma’s lone standout against Atalanta, but several players were closer to the good side of average.
Stuck In Between
Devyne Rensch
Rensch continued his good run of form with a strong showing against Atalanta on Saturday. In addition to setting up Hermoso’s goal with a headed assist, Rensch made five recoveries, played six balls into the final third, and created three scoring chances before leaving the pitch injured in the 78th minute.
Matías Soulé
After a short injury spell, Soulé seems to be finding his footing little by little. While he didn’t impact the bottom line last night, Soulé created four scoring chances (a game-high) and played five balls into the final third and recovered three balls. Stats aside, Soulé and Malen appear to be developing some nice chemistry down the right, with the former finding the latter with increasing regularity over the past few appearances.
Evan Ndicka
While he may be this summer’s sacrificial lamb, the 26-year-old defender continues to dominate at the back. Going the full 90 yet again, Ndicka racked up a game-high 14 defensive actions, including six headed clearances, while making six recoveries and forcing Carnesecchi into a save in the 22nd minute.
Stephan El Shaarawy
We have an obvious soft spot for SES around here, so we’ll take any chance we can get to shout out Roma’s beloved veteran winger. Playing 60 minutes last night, El Shaarawy didn’t have an enormous impact on the match, but the Italian/Egyptian hybrid recovered five balls, played five more into the final third, and created the game’s only “big chance” when he nearly set up Malen on a bang-bang play in the 22nd minute.
While the result felt almost predetermined, and yet another link in a long, disappointing chain, Roma gave a good effort. All we can do now is hope for better luck and sharper finishing next weekend against Bologna.
