As much as we decried yesterday’s loss to Inter Milan as a fait accompli, we have to give credit where it’s due: Roma kept last year’s Champions League finalists under control for most of the game. After giving up a goal that initially seemed like a total defensive breakdown, Roma bounced back, matching the Nerazzurri step for step on Saturday afternoon.
And in truth, Bonny’s 6th-minute match-winner was simply a matter of timing—he beat Roma’s offside trap with an exquisitely well-timed run off the
ball, setting up a 30-yard breakaway chance at Mile Svilar’s goal. Still, despite the horrible optics of a striker running unfettered into the final third, Roma had a chance to stop the French forward; Evan Ndicka did well to catch up to Bonny while Mile Svilar seemingly had the near post covered—they just failed to execute when it mattered most.
So, even though, by Roma Happened standards, this result felt preordained, the Giallorossi did enough to justify a draw at the Stadio Olimpico yesterday.
Moral victories aside, we still have to sharpen our pitchforks…but let’s start on the bright side.
The Saints
Paulo Dybala
With Artem Dovbyk and Evan Ferguson ready for action, Gasperini still opted for a strikerless look against Inter on Saturday, placing Dybala in the false nine role made famous by Francesco Totti nearly 15 years ago. Unlike Totti in the late 2000s and early 2010s, injuries didn’t push Dybala into this role. Still, despite limited support on the frontline, Dybala was effective in that role, placing both of his shots on target, dishing out five shot-creating actions, four key passes, and 0.3 xA, the latter being the highest marks in the match.
It wasn’t a jaw-dropping “oh my god, can you believe he did that!?” kind of performance, but on a night bereft of attacking action, Dybala still managed to set up his teammates while testing Inter keeper Yan Sommer twice in the second half.
Matías Soulé
Take everything we just said about Dybala and dial it back maybe 5%, and you get a perfect summary of Soulé’s 79-minute performance against Inter: one shot taken, one shot on target; four shot-creating actions; three key passes; three passes into the penalty area; eight progressive passes, and even 11 progressive passes received—showing he was not only aggressive pushing the ball forward but also served as an advanced outlet for his teammates.
Manu Koné
I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who enjoyed watching Koné dominate the midfield against the very team that tried to lure him away from Roma over the summer. In 90 minutes last night, Koné took 62 touches (most of any attacking or midfield player) and contributed a match-high six shot-creating actions, three key passes, two clearances, and five ball recoveries—he even drew four fouls, the most of any attacking or midfield player.
He’s just an absolute buzzsaw each and every week.
Gianluca Mancini
The 29-year-old center-back was at his dynamic best against Inter Milan, doing a bit of everything on the field. From his game-high 10 defensive actions and 12 duels won to his 499 yards of progressive passing, two shot-creating actions, and two carries into the final third, Mancini was the proverbial thorn in Inter Milan’s side.
And check out his heatmap—he essentially made the middle channel is own private domain:
The Sinners
Mile Svilar
As one who stumped for Svilar from the minute he arrived, it pains me to bring out the pitchfork here, but he whiffed on the Bonny goal.
It was only one moment, but it cost Roma a sure-to-be-crucial point. Svilar may be one of the best keepers on the planet, but even he’s prone to occassional miscues.
Artem Dovbyk
After getting a lifeline in Roma when his transfer to AC Milan fell through at the last moment, Dovbyk’s future in the capital is growing bleaker by the week. While we can’t fault him for his 88th-minute shot—he took an attempt worth 0.14 xG and turned it into 0.68 xGOT (meaning he took a poor chance and actually improved the likely outcome) but was denied by Sommer—his missed header in the 35th minute, which came inside the penalty area, proved costly for the Giallorossi.
And finally…
The Referee Camera
Between the curt and often banal in-game interviews with managers and coaches, and the awkward, rushed, and superficial interviews as they enter the locker room, broadcasters worldwide try to spice up their coverage with these “inside looks” that add little real value to the broadcast.
But the new Serie A referee cam may take the cake:
How did we ever live without these extreme close-ups in walleye vision!? Whenever I watch a match, I think, “Are Lautaro Martinez’s pores clogged?” or “Man, I wish I were a fly and could get a close look at the referee’s eyelashes and cheek ones in profile!”
Enough of this, please make it stop!
Stuck in Between
There wasn’t any ambiguity in either of these performances, but one gets the impression that these guys will loom large as we progress through the season.
Jan Ziółkowski
The 20-year-old Polish defender certainly didn’t shrink from the occasion against one of Italy’s best sides last night. Coming on midway through the second half, the lanky defender threw himself right into the fray, winning both tackles he attempted in the defensive third, both of which resulted in Roma regaining possession from Inter. He even managed two clearances and played two balls into the final third in his 36 minute cameo.
Leon Bailey
After waiting nearly two months to see the Jamaican international in action, we got a glimpse at what the former Aston Villa winger can offer: speed, aggression and close control. Bailey took only 14 touches yesterday, but he immediately had the Inter defense on its heels, looking like the missing link in Gasperini’s attack.
If he’s fully fit, there should be plenty of minutes (and starts) in line for Bailey in the coming weeks and months.
