Match ReportSerie A● AI
15h agoUdinese 1-4 Roma: Gasperini's side run riot at the Bluenergy Stadium
Roma routed Udinese at the Bluenergy Stadium, with Ghilardi adding his name to the list of scorers in the eighth match in twenty days, a sign of a side that spreads its goals across the squad. Gasperini's team, lining up in their usual 3-4-2-1, were far too strong for an Udinese side on a sixth consecutive defeat and struggling badly for both results and performance. The win also brings a small record: 28 goals in the first 10 rounds of Serie A, which shifts the focus onto Roma's attack, even though until two matches ago they had boasted the best defence in Europe.
Runjaić set his Udinese side up in a 5-3-2, with Ekkelenkamp as the anchor man. Roma controlled the game from the start, with Cristante and De Roon dropping in turn to build alongside Ndicka, the two wing-backs pushing wide, and Wesley and Molina pushing into attack. The left-hand channel of Mora and Wesley, with Hermoso in support, was especially active, and Roma found space mainly out wide. Possession, however, did not initially produce many chances. Roma were slow to move the ball, allowing Udinese's physical approach to disrupt their build-up. Their problem was failing to recognise the need to speed up circulation, playing quick two-touch combinations to cut down the time Udinese had to press and avoiding the physical duels that slowed or muddied the game.
Once Roma raised the tempo, they moved the ball from right to left and found Wesley, whose cross reached Cristante at the centre of the box to open the scoring. The first two goals, which settled the match, came from faster ball movement and two deadly runs by Cristante into the box: the first with him as the direct scorer, the second as the provider of an assist for Mora. With both sides lined up in mirror image, switches of play became less useful, making it essential to work well in the areas around the ball, move it quickly and keep avoiding physical duels. Wesley and Malen were still caught out by this, with Kabasele closing them down in a series of tight physical challenges. Roma kept up their pace after going two goals ahead, forced Udinese into errors and hit two posts through mistimed efforts by Soulé and Malen. Malen then made amends, escaping Kabasele to make it 3-0. Ndicka added the fourth with a header that was not especially convincing, at the stadium where he had previously endured a difficult time, with Okoye again looking uncertain, as he had on the first goal. It was 4-0 after 33 minutes of ruthless finishing from a big side against an Udinese team whose league position speaks for itself. Gollini, who has been flawless in Serie A so far, twice stopped sporadic counter-attacks by the hosts before half-time.
The second half was important for managing energy ahead of the trip to Manchester. Gasperini made no changes at the restart, avoiding sending the message that the match was over and that it should not be played out in full. Roma continued to move the ball quickly while keeping possession and exploiting the space available. From a corner won by Udinese, the same pattern as in the first half saw Miller given room to shoot from distance after De Roon had moved away to pick up a pointless run inside the box; Ndicka and his team were slow to react to the short rebound from Gollini, and Udinese pulled one back to 1-4. After an hour Chakvetadze and Unay Gómez came on for Davis and Ekkelenkamp. Runjaić stayed with a 3-5-2, to which Gasperini responded by bringing on Pisilli as anchor man in place of Mora and Castro for Malen. Late on came a series of changes: Piotrowski replaced Zaniolo, Mancini and Rensch came on for Wesley and Soulé, with Ghilardi pushing up as fifth man on the right and Molina high ahead of him. In the final minutes a late lapse by Roma from an Udinese corner allowed Palma to reduce the deficit further. Jovanovic and Arizala came on for Karlström and Kamara, giving Runjaić a breather as he watched his side respond, and Koulierakis replaced Hermoso. Ghilardi had the last word, collecting a delightful, soft assist from Castro to fire home his first Serie A goal, the same technical touch with which he had already made his mark in the Champions League.
