Roma Loses To Napoli, Scudetto Hopes Come Crashing Down
Roma-Napoli was not a thrilling game of attacking football. Instead it was a brutal encounter between two very physical sides, with entertainment tossed out the proverbial window in favor of sheer savagery at times. There was a spitting contest, slaps, and even controversy over yellow card counts not seen this side of 2006.
More importantly, the game helped to settle the Scudetto race. Napoli would go on to continue their dream run to reach AC Milan at the top. Roma, on the other hand, were left with little choice but to change expectations and, much like Larry David, curb enthusiasm.
After a poor run of results including a loss to Inter, Claudio Ranieri’s side ventured into their home game against Napoli knowing that anything except all three points would kill off scudetto hopes. Serie A is far too tight and it is far too late in the season to begin a dream run like the capital side did last term. Injuries and suspensions gave Ranieri no break at all, and he was forced to play rightback Marco Cassetti in the center of defense.
A move that, all in all, did not turn out badly. Cassetti looked the more assured of the two centerbacks, a largely ironic statement given that the other was stalwart Juan. The Brazilian has looked quite out of form in recent months and perhaps the rumors that Werder Bremen are inquiring about him will not be treated with disdain by the Roma tifosi. The two, as well as John Arne Riise and the rest of the backline had an enormous challenge on their hands, dealt with keeping out the likes of Edinson Cavani and Ezequeil Lavezzi.
The Napoli players often had the Roman gladiators beat for pace, and Walter Mazarri’s 3-5-2 completely dominated the midfield. Roma, though at home, had the resemblance of an away side as Napoli took the game to them from the thirtieth minute onward. Scoreless at halftime, Claudio decided that he had seen enough, and sent on Jeremy Menez for Rodrigo Taddei. The Frenchman, so often devastating when coming on as a substitute, left little impression on the game, and Ranieri’s coaching abilities may be called into question here: why leave such a potent force on the bench in a must win game?
Menez’s diminished influence may have occured because the game was lost so soon after he was introduced. Within five minutes, Juan conceded a penalty which Cavani tucked away after much controversy. Not only was the penalty call somewhat dubious, but it was unclear that the ball had crossed the line after hitting both posts until being seen on video replay. Nevertheless, the referee got both decisions right, and Roma were suddenly on the backfoot at the Olympico.
Leandro Greco and Francesco Totti were thrown on as the match progressed, in a desperate bid to earn something from the game; and yet, Ranieri’s decision to take off Mirko Vucinic at a time when a goal was so needed remains yet another questionable call. Surely Claudio could have left all four attackers on the pitch at once. After all, he had done so for an entire half against Brescia, in which Roma both scored and, albeit, conceded; but a goal was absolutely crucial in this match, so gambling should have been his recourse.
Nevertheless, it was only Napoli who scored once again. Cavani latched onto a brilliant cross from captain Paolo Cannavaro and headed the ball into the net late in the game. Roma were defeated at home for the first time all season. Just as soundly, so were the team’s hopes for the title.
Both Simone Perrotta and Ranieri himself admitted post-match that this Roma was certainly not the one from last year. In fact, the midfielder claimed that enthusiasm was lacking from the group, and the coach himself stated that he is not sure what to do to fix the side’s slide. Such words will not inspire anyone with hope, and it seems as if Claudio himself, much like his team, has been found out.
Roma fans now look to the future- a much brighter one, with the impending sale to the Bostonian Thomas di Benedetto looking closer and closer to completion. Champions’ League qualification is now surely the priority of a club that once dared to dream for the title. However, it would be foolish to overlook the fact that La Magica are in Europe’s Premier competition this season, and have a game against Shakhtar this very night.
Perhaps if anything is to be made memorable from what is quickly turning into a disappointing season, it must begin with overcoming the team from Ukraine.
