Roma salvaged another narrow 1-0 win, with Chris Smalling’s header handing Cremonese their second defeat of the new campaign.
Roma welcomed newly-promoted Cremonese in their first home game of the 2022/23 Serie A season. Matching the exuberant atmosphere of Stadio Olimpico, the home side made a fantastic start to the game, winning a couple of corners in the opening minutes.
Nevertheless, Cremonese grew into the game, regaining confidence from a positive performance against Fiorentina. Following a flurry of wasted chances by the Giallorossi, an overhead kick from Cyriel Dessers missed the goal frame by a close margin.
Nicolò Zaniolo, who had a bright game, sustained a shoulder injury and got stretchered off the field, with his compatriot Stephan El Shaarawy coming onto the field as his replacement. The first half ended in a 0-0 scoreline.
At the start of the second half, Cremonese came close to drawing the first blood, with Dessers just denied by the bar. In what appeared to be one of the golden opportunities for the Romans, Stephan El Shaarawy hit the bar; and Paulo Dybala shot wide from the rebound.
A delivery from Lorenzo Pellegrini’s corner saw Chris Smalling rising the highest to head the ball into the nets. With the deadlock broken, Jose Mourinho eventually heaved a sigh of relief. The game became a bit open, with opportunities in abundance falling on the platter for both teams. Roma’s defence squeezed out the 1-0 victory. Here are the player ratings from Roma’s second win of the domestic season.
Roma
Rui Patrício (7.5); Mancini (7), Smalling (8), Ibañez (7); Karsdorp (6.5), Cristante (7), Pellegrini (7.5), Spinazzola (7.5); Dybala (6), Zaniolo (6.5); Abraham (6)
Substitutes: El Shaarawy (6.5), Matic (6), Zalewski (6), Çelik (N/A)
Cremonese
Radu (8); Aiwu (6), Chiriches (7), Lochoshvili (7); Ghiglione (6), Pickel (6), Ascacibar (6), Valeri (6.5); Zanimacchia (6); Dessers (7), Okereke (6)
Substitutes: Buonaiuto (6), Báez (6), Bianchetti (6), Tsadjout (N/A), Ciofani (N/A)
GIFN | Jyotirmoy Halder
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