Serie A, Roma score 3 against Sassuolo and move closer to the top

Three goals against Sassuolo and Roma goes to rest during the national break, confirming its offensive vocation and getting closer to the top, waiting for the league leaders Lazio's match in Naples and the direct clash between Inter, temporarily overtaken tonight, and Como. Gasperini's satisfaction is also that he closed the tour de force of nine games in 28 days well, costing several injuries and the two heavy European stumbles resulting from a lack of personality. Now the Giallorossi coach will be able to recover all the injured players and give breathing space to a team that has been dominant until now, but which is showing signs of tiredness.

Even against a fragile Sassuolo, the overall result hides, if we are being picky, small flaws of nastiness in front of goal and pauses in pace, irrelevant against opponents like Aquilani's team, not at the level that Roma wants to reach. On the positive side, there is Konè's recovery and another goal from Mora, which is increasingly in Gasp's plan.

At the Olimpico they face the most prolific attack (28) and the weakest defense of Serie A (26), and the match seems to be written. While waiting to have Svilar and Dybala back after the break, Gasperini meanwhile recovers Manu Konè, who is immediately on the pitch paired with Cristante; in attack Mora, freshly called up to his senior national team, is confirmed with Soulè and Malen, while in defense without Mancini, trust in Balerdi shaken by the mistake in Manchester.

Aquilani, without Berardi, gives up the 4-3-3 for a cautious five-man midfield line, with Laurienté-Esposito in front to exploit the spaces. The guests start the attack: in the 3rd minute Matic tries from outside, Vasquez has to stretch to put it in the corner. Sassuolo presses high and when they defend they are very short, Roma struggle to find space and then Konè tries in a slalom and then Balerdi heads from a corner, stopped by Caleta-Car's overhead kick on the line (12'). In the 17th minute Mora's shot is deflected for a corner by Walukiewicz, on the corner Cristante heads the ball and goalkeeper Muric has to remove the ball from the top corner. The spaces are closed, Matic often falls back on the defense line and is invaluable as a playmaker when coming out of traffic, so Roma need Hermoso's insertion to unlock it: in the centre, the Spanish defender cuts the lines, talks with Malen and from the spot unloads the left-footed shot into the net to make it 1-0, in the 27th minute. Roma sensed the moment and pushed, three minutes later on a ball recovered by Cristante the change of play from left to right caught Malen in the area, the right-footed shot wasn't much but Emilia's double deflection led to Walukiewicz's own goal and it was the Giallorossi's second. Balerdi tries, blocked by Muric, but Sassuolo also worries the Giallorossi goal with Idzes in the final.

Upon returning to the pitch, Aquilani plays the Bowie move for Matic, to reinforce the attack, but Roma start off strongly, coming close to scoring three times in the first 10 minutes: the first chance is devoured by a pair of Soule' and Malen, alone in front of Muric following a through ball from Cristante. Then Mora shoots but it is deflected for a corner, Malen tries again and is saved: then in the 13th minute the two team up, and it is the young Portuguese who finds the 3-0 with a right-footed shot from the crossbar, for his fourth goal of the season. At 3-0, Roma creates and wastes, Malen is not in the evening in the 26th minute, he wastes again on an assist from new entry Pisilli.

Gasperini lets Hermoso, Konè, Mora and Malen breathe with substitutions, while Pisilli takes care of wasting another couple of good opportunities.

But in the meantime Sassuolo has disappeared from the field, the black-green crisis continues. Roma's journey instead continues with goals, and Gasp greets the Olimpico with a dance of joy to the tune of Grazie Roma.