At the Olimpico on Saturday, August 24, Roma put together a display that went further than the usual opening-day adrenaline: dominant possession and chance creation that kept coming, while Fiorentina struggled to build anything resembling a move.
Possession sat at 61% for the hosts against 39% for Fiorentina, which is more than can be said for the shot counts, where the numbers moved around depending on who was counting. Shots on target were the clearest gap: seven for Roma against a single one from Fiorentina all afternoon. Roma also completed nearly twice as many passes as their visitors and won the aerial battle comfortably, 9 duels to 3. What stood out more than any single number was the shape of the pressing: wing backs pushing forward with real consistency and a high line that didn't switch off even when the ball looked lost, closer to the front-foot version of Gasperini's football than the more cautious, results-first team we mostly saw for long stretches last season.
One match isn't enough to declare a tactical shift official, but when what you watched lines up with what little hard data holds steady across sources, the signal still carries some weight.
Malen and Dybala are already speaking the same language
Donyell Malen closed the game with a hat-trick, in the 27th, 52nd and 60th minutes, and every single goal came from a Paulo Dybala ****** ist. One player supplying all three ****** ists for a Serie A hat-trick is rarer than you'd think: the last time it happened was May 2, 2021, when Rodrigo Palacio scored a treble for Bologna against Fiorentina off three ****** ists from Emanuel Vignato, in a game that finished 3-3. Malen walked off with a perfect 10.0 Sofascore rating after just 68 minutes, subbed before full time because there was nothing left to prove.
#malen #single #possession #last
Possession sat at 61% for the hosts against 39% for Fiorentina, which is more than can be said for the shot counts, where the numbers moved around depending on who was counting. Shots on target were the clearest gap: seven for Roma against a single one from Fiorentina all afternoon. Roma also completed nearly twice as many passes as their visitors and won the aerial battle comfortably, 9 duels to 3. What stood out more than any single number was the shape of the pressing: wing backs pushing forward with real consistency and a high line that didn't switch off even when the ball looked lost, closer to the front-foot version of Gasperini's football than the more cautious, results-first team we mostly saw for long stretches last season.
One match isn't enough to declare a tactical shift official, but when what you watched lines up with what little hard data holds steady across sources, the signal still carries some weight.
Malen and Dybala are already speaking the same language
Donyell Malen closed the game with a hat-trick, in the 27th, 52nd and 60th minutes, and every single goal came from a Paulo Dybala ****** ist. One player supplying all three ****** ists for a Serie A hat-trick is rarer than you'd think: the last time it happened was May 2, 2021, when Rodrigo Palacio scored a treble for Bologna against Fiorentina off three ****** ists from Emanuel Vignato, in a game that finished 3-3. Malen walked off with a perfect 10.0 Sofascore rating after just 68 minutes, subbed before full time because there was nothing left to prove.
#malen #single #possession #last
2 months ago
