Roma-Juventus 1-1 THE NEWS
In the spirit of not losing, despite having both tried to win, Roma and Juventus took a step towards the same goal with a 1-1 draw at the Olimpico in the most awaited match of the day with a great scent of the Champions League. The pressure was higher on the Giallorossi, chased for fifth place by an Atalanta team in great form and tired by the European match against Bayer and the related, complicated comeback for the final. The point won is not one to throw away for De Rossi, but certainly Allegri, who would have secured his Champions League place by winning, accepts it with greater tranquility, especially considering his certainly not exciting period.
De Rossi rested Mancini and Smalling, fielding Ndicka and LLorente in front of Svilar, Angelino on the left and Kristensen on the right, confirming Dybala and Lukaku up front supported by Baldanzi. Allegri, without Yildiz and Alex Sandro, gave space to Chiesa, his best, alongside Vlahovic, and Weah. It was the Serbian, certainly not in a prolific period, who started the game with a dangerous shot in the 7th minute, while Kristensen responded in the 12th minute with a header that hit the crossbar after a cross from Angelino .
There wasn’t even time to feel sorry for Roma, because in the 16th minute Lukaku tapped in a clumsy clearance from Gatti after a close-range shot from Cristante. The Bianconeri tried to react by working on the flanks but without creating any big chances until Chiesa delivered a cross just after the half hour mark for Bremer’s head who beat a somewhat stationary Svilar. The 1-1 draw fairly reflected the progress of the match, with Roma in better control of the ball and Juve more restrained.
Dybala remained on the bench in the second half, replaced by Zalewski, and Chiesa immediately took all the show with a shot from outside the area that Svilar, pardoned, could only see hit the post to his left. The Argentine’s absence weighed a bit on Roma’s maneuver, while the competitive level rose, with a few too many harsh interventions: when Weah brought down Paredes in midfield, Allegri preferred to replace him with Kostic. The Bianconeri took the upper hand a bit, again fueled by Chiesa and Rabiot, but Roma came close to taking the lead twice shortly after the 20th minute, with Pellegrini and Kristensen, whose shots were somewhat fortunately deflected into a corner .
Lukaku was also out, Abraham and Azmoun came on for the last half hour, and Roma raised their center of gravity, while for the last quarter of an hour Allegri brought on Milik and Kean for Chiesa, exhausted, and Vlahovic and De Rossi he recalled Pellegrini giving space to Bove. Roma were saved at the end by Svilar with two saves, on a close shot by Locatelli in the 34th minute and a header by Kean in the 44th minute, while the ‘usual’ goal in injury time did not arrive this time, thanks to a double uncertainty from Abraham. So, there are three hot days left, plus a cup day, to turn the season around.
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