One could write a compelling doctoral dissertation on Roma’s various mental hang-ups against certain opponents. Whether you call them bugaboos or deep-seated mental blocks, Roma tends to come up short against certain opponents more than others. Sometimes this manifests as poor shooting, losing your man at the far post, or the opposition keeper seemingly growing extra limbs during the match.
No matter what you call this psychosis, it seldom ends well for Roma. Historically, no team has provoked these
responses from Roma quite like Juventus, but Atalanta is a close second. For Serie A oldheads like me, it still feels a bit incongruous to see La Dea near the top of the table each season, but we’re past the novelty by now. Even after stealing the architect of Atalanta’s success last summer, Roma still came up short against the boys from Bergamo, salvaging just one point in their two meetings.
Try as they might, Roma hasn’t been able to handle Atalanta over the past several years, posting a 0-2-4 record over the past three seasons. Today’s fixture at the Olimpico may not have been the proverbial clash between the immovable object and an unstoppable force, but the outcome was far more significant than a week-three fixture would suggest.
With Gasperini reverting to the opening-day lineup that thrashed Fiorentina 4-0, headlined by Donyell Malen, Paulo Dybala, and Rodrigo Mora in attack, the club seemed poised to overcome a stingy Atalanta backline that had conceded only one goal in their first two matches.
And just as they did in the prior two weeks against Fiorentina and Lecce, Roma left little to chance, pressing the issue from the word go. With five attempts in the opening 20 minutes, including four in the box, and 18 in the first half, the Giallorossi certainly weren’t gun shy.
There was just one problem. One Marco Carnesecchi-sized problem. Despite the volume of attempts, which numbered almost 40 by the time the final whistle blew, Roma was confounded by the 26-year-old keeper. While he got a helping hand from the woodwork twice in the second half, Carnesecchi was simply astounding, making nine saves, including six in the box, one high claim and two punches this afternoon. Whether he was denying a Bryan Cristante header, squaring up a Dybala effort, or scrambling to cover the posts, Carnesecchi was the stuff of Roma Happened nightmares tonight in Rome.
But, as the old saying goes, he who laughs last, laughs hardest.
After surviving another onslaught of attempts from the Giallorossi, including two stinging efforts from second-half sub Santiago Castro, who struck the upright and the crossbar late in the second half, Carnesecchi’s luck would run out. Minutes after a headed attempt was lost to his more excited teammates, Mario Hermoso brought the house down with a looping header off a Soulé corner, positioning himself perfectly to flick the ball just past a hapless Carnesecchi.
Considering they went 0-36 prior to that attempt, that late equalizer might as well have been the decisive PK in the World Cup final, but Roma didn’t relent. With little more than 90 seconds remaining in stoppage time, Soulé slipped the match-winner past Carensecchi, beating the surely exhausted Atalanta keeper at the near post to preserve Roma’s perfect start to the season.
Final Thoughts
While Roma’s pursuit of a new left-winger dominated the headlines this summer, their failure to secure one confused many fans and pundits. Today’s performance was a test case for this seemingly quixotic side. Roma may still lack that speed burner on the left flank, but the interchangeability of Mora, Soulé, and Dybala, who are essentially three sides of the same coin, gives Roma an enormous advantage. Rather than defending individual players with specific roles, you’re facing an amorphous blob that can manipulate you from any angle, in one-v-ones, combinations, pattern play, etc.
And when you toss in weapons like Castro, who came in off the bench for Malen without missing a beat, Roma suddenly has the ability to turn “one of those matches” into an asset rather than an excuse.
Up Next
Roma returns to the Champions League, hitting the road to face Fenerbahçe on Thursday
