Gasperini proud of Roma's fightback at Napoli despite losing two points

Roma goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini was at the heart of a wild 3-3 draw at Napoli, with a number of the goals passing through his hands. Napoli-Roma finished 3-3 at the Maradona, and the points Roma gained, or the two they lost, were decided largely by their goalkeeper. Before this match, Gollini had kept a clean sheet in Serie A, but his unbeaten run ended in the 28th minute when Anguissa scored with an overhead kick. The shot was not especially difficult, but Gollini saw the ball only at the last moment. The move began with a free kick won by a mistake from the keeper himself: his long clearance to Cristante was overhit, and the midfielder accelerated and fouled De Bruyne. After Napoli took the lead, Gollini recovered and kept Roma in the game. He saved with a sharp reaction to deny Olivera from close range, and later came off his line, outside the area, to stop De Bruyne. His teammates then fought back from 2-0 to 2-2, but Napoli regained the lead through McTominay. The goal surprised Gollini in particular, as a precise but not particularly fast effort from 25 metres went in at his near post.

Roma came back from two goals down to draw 3-3 at Napoli, with Leonardo Balerdi scoring both the equaliser and the late leveller, a result that the Giallorossi reached despite missing several important players. Anguissa gave Napoli the lead at 28' with an spectacular overhead kick, and Roma had their own chances before and after that, especially through Malen and Cristante, so the Giallorossi went into the interval behind without ever having lost their grip on the match. The problem came straight after the break: McTominay headed in the 2-0 at 48' from a Politano cross. Roma have continued to concede too often in the opening minutes of the second half, and it nearly cost them dearly at the Maradona. Gasperini made changes, and from the bench Balerdi emerged as the night's standout. Matías Soulé pulled one back at 69', finishing a move with Malen with a left-footed shot into the corner. Five minutes later it was 2-2: from a corner, Castro returned the ball into the six-yard box and Balerdi drove it in with his left foot. Roma pushed on for the win rather than settling for a draw, but at 83' McTominay struck again with an angled right-foot shot after Gollini failed to close the goal down, putting Napoli 3-2 ahead. Roma kept attacking and equalised at 89': Wesley delivered a cross from the right and Balerdi, again, headed home the 3-3. It was a brace for a defender who had come off the bench, and a performance that changes how the Argentine is viewed in the squad. Gasperini now has the pleasant problem of finding room for a player who is demanding it on the pitch. The result also underlines how much the transfer market has strengthened Roma, with decisive contributions from players who would not have carried the same weight a few months ago. Roma remain unbeaten in Serie A: five wins and three draws from the first eight matchdays, 18 points, and a run of 15 consecutive league games without defeat when the end of last season is included. The loss to Real Madrid remains their only defeat of the season across Serie A and the Champions League. Lazio, after beating Parma 2-1, briefly moved alone at the top on 22 points, while Roma sit on 18 and Inter, on 19, have yet to play their eighth-round match. It is only October, and the table is still wide open. The real test, the article argues, is whether this Roma have the mental strength to stay near the top, and the answer from the Maradona was encouraging: the team made errors, conceded three goals and again started the second half poorly, yet survived its own faults. Roma have now shown they are hard to beat, and the next step will come through winning direct confrontations.

Roma drew 2-2 at Napoli's Stadio Maradona, and coach Gian Piero Gasperini said he was satisfied with his side's character, though a sliver of regret remained after the team let a win slip in the final minutes. Gasperini said: "There is awareness, we play good football — the coach of Roma declares —. The morale is high and the impression is that we have lost two points. But given how the match went, it's fine even like this. Certainly we played against a strong Napoli, and if you are competitive against teams of this calibre it means you can compete with many sides in Italy." The analysis, reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, highlighted the two faces Roma showed over the 90 minutes. After half an hour of early suffering, in which the side struggled to find the right exits, Roma changed their rhythm. Gasperini said: "I am satisfied with the second half. Napoli were superior there, we suffered it, we were in difficulty and struggled to get out. They had an extra gear, Politano worked very well and he is the one who created more than one problem for us. Then we managed to get our bearings and we grew already at the end of the first half. In the second we played well, we had the feeling inside that we could win the match, with great conviction. We were good at this, there was never any frenzy. We kept our way of playing and some quality goals came too." Despite McTominay's equaliser to make it 2-2, which came at the moment of greatest Roma pressure, the squad did not fall apart. Gasperini said: "It was a hammer blow because there was little time to recover. But inside us we felt strong and we were good at taking it back again. Even if the feeling of being able to turn it around had been there earlier as well." Gasperini praised the individual performances: "Balerdi scored the goals that were asked of him, Soulé reopened it, Ndicka was a giant. Three players who seem to be living a moment of grace. Soulé played an extraordinary match, exactly like Ndicka." On the impact of substitutes, he added: "The changes gave us energy. I put Leonardo on because we were exposed to the counterattack and his speed at that moment was important, also given the booking of Hermoso. Balerdi connects the play, he has crazy energy, he is a great reinforcement. He and De Roon did not take long to settle in, we are talking about two players who were leaders at their former clubs." There is also a statistical concern: McTominay's goal was Roma's fourth conceded straight after half-time this season across Serie A and cup competitions, following Inter, Atalanta and Fenerbahçe. Gasperini played this down: "Perhaps there is also a bit of coincidence — we are talking about two valuable players. But we must also remember we were up against a great team. It takes a bit of patience, but I am sure Allegri's side is destined to climb the table." Asked about the late exchange with Allegri, he smiled: "Allegri furious? I hope he wasn't angry with me, it wasn't me who sent him off..."

Massimiliano Allegri's post-match outburst after Napoli's 3-3 draw with Roma at the Maradona has sparked a row, with Roma hitting back that their Champions League qualification was earned on the pitch. The Napoli coach was sent off late in the match, after Balerdi's equaliser, when Napoli protested a foul in the build-up to the goal. Away from the official microphones, Allegri reportedly said: "Sempre loro… L'anno scorso gli hanno messo la Champions in tasca. L'ho pagata con il Milan". The remark refers to last season, when Roma secured Champions League qualification on the pitch while Allegri's Milan finished outside the top four. According to Fabrizio Romano, posting on his WhatsApp channel, Roma were "surprised and irritated" by the coach's comments and consider the attack "fuori luogo", or out of place. The club's position is clear: "la qualificazione alla Champions della passata stagione è stata conquistata sul campo, senza alcun presunto aiuto arbitrale", meaning the qualification was won on the pitch, without any alleged refereeing help. The response has not come through an official statement but was relayed clearly after Allegri's words began circulating overnight, and the tone shows how much the remark irritated the club. Allegri had already shown his frustration before the cameras, saying he was too angry to analyse the match clearly and contesting the referee's decision to send him off. His private comment turned a protest about the officiating at Napoli-Roma into a wider dispute, reopening a wound Allegri evidently carries from last season. Roma, however, consider that qualification the result of their own route and their consistent form across the league, and do not intend to accept insinuations of any other kind.

Roma came back from two goals down to draw 3-3 at Napoli, with Leonardo Balerdi scoring both the equaliser and the late leveller, a result that the Giallorossi reached despite missing several important players. Anguissa gave Napoli the lead at 28' with an spectacular overhead kick, and Roma had their own chances before and after that, especially through Malen and Cristante, so the Giallorossi went into the interval behind without ever having lost their grip on the match. The problem came straight after the break: McTominay headed in the 2-0 at 48' from a Politano cross. Roma have continued to concede too often in the opening minutes of the second half, and it nearly cost them dearly at the Maradona. Gasperini made changes, and from the bench Balerdi emerged as the night's standout. Matías Soulé pulled one back at 69', finishing a move with Malen with a left-footed shot into the corner. Five minutes later it was 2-2: from a corner, Castro returned the ball into the six-yard box and Balerdi drove it in with his left foot. Roma pushed on for the win rather than settling for a draw, but at 83' McTominay struck again with an angled right-foot shot after Gollini failed to close the goal down, putting Napoli 3-2 ahead. Roma kept attacking and equalised at 89': Wesley delivered a cross from the right and Balerdi, again, headed home the 3-3. It was a brace for a defender who had come off the bench, and a performance that changes how the Argentine is viewed in the squad. Gasperini now has the pleasant problem of finding room for a player who is demanding it on the pitch. The result also underlines how much the transfer market has strengthened Roma, with decisive contributions from players who would not have carried the same weight a few months ago. Roma remain unbeaten in Serie A: five wins and three draws from the first eight matchdays, 18 points, and a run of 15 consecutive league games without defeat when the end of last season is included. The loss to Real Madrid remains their only defeat of the season across Serie A and the Champions League. Lazio, after beating Parma 2-1, briefly moved alone at the top on 22 points, while Roma sit on 18 and Inter, on 19, have yet to play their eighth-round match. It is only October, and the table is still wide open. The real test, the article argues, is whether this Roma have the mental strength to stay near the top, and the answer from the Maradona was encouraging: the team made errors, conceded three goals and again started the second half poorly, yet survived its own faults. Roma have now shown they are hard to beat, and the next step will come through winning direct confrontations.

Roma drew 2-2 at Napoli's Stadio Maradona, and coach Gian Piero Gasperini said he was satisfied with his side's character, though a sliver of regret remained after the team let a win slip in the final minutes. Gasperini said: "There is awareness, we play good football — the coach of Roma declares —. The morale is high and the impression is that we have lost two points. But given how the match went, it's fine even like this. Certainly we played against a strong Napoli, and if you are competitive against teams of this calibre it means you can compete with many sides in Italy." The analysis, reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, highlighted the two faces Roma showed over the 90 minutes. After half an hour of early suffering, in which the side struggled to find the right exits, Roma changed their rhythm. Gasperini said: "I am satisfied with the second half. Napoli were superior there, we suffered it, we were in difficulty and struggled to get out. They had an extra gear, Politano worked very well and he is the one who created more than one problem for us. Then we managed to get our bearings and we grew already at the end of the first half. In the second we played well, we had the feeling inside that we could win the match, with great conviction. We were good at this, there was never any frenzy. We kept our way of playing and some quality goals came too." Despite McTominay's equaliser to make it 2-2, which came at the moment of greatest Roma pressure, the squad did not fall apart. Gasperini said: "It was a hammer blow because there was little time to recover. But inside us we felt strong and we were good at taking it back again. Even if the feeling of being able to turn it around had been there earlier as well." Gasperini praised the individual performances: "Balerdi scored the goals that were asked of him, Soulé reopened it, Ndicka was a giant. Three players who seem to be living a moment of grace. Soulé played an extraordinary match, exactly like Ndicka." On the impact of substitutes, he added: "The changes gave us energy. I put Leonardo on because we were exposed to the counterattack and his speed at that moment was important, also given the booking of Hermoso. Balerdi connects the play, he has crazy energy, he is a great reinforcement. He and De Roon did not take long to settle in, we are talking about two players who were leaders at their former clubs." There is also a statistical concern: McTominay's goal was Roma's fourth conceded straight after half-time this season across Serie A and cup competitions, following Inter, Atalanta and Fenerbahçe. Gasperini played this down: "Perhaps there is also a bit of coincidence — we are talking about two valuable players. But we must also remember we were up against a great team. It takes a bit of patience, but I am sure Allegri's side is destined to climb the table." Asked about the late exchange with Allegri, he smiled: "Allegri furious? I hope he wasn't angry with me, it wasn't me who sent him off..."