Roma capped off a great week by cruising to a comfortable 2-0 win against Cagliari on Sunday afternoon thanks to goals from Mattia Destro and Alessandro Florenzi.
Given that reigning Scudetto champions Juventus battled to a 1-0 victory over AC Milan, the onus was on Rudi Garcia’s side to continue to keep the pace as the only other team to so far maintain a perfect record this season.
The Giallorossi welcomed former coach Zdenek Zeman to the Stadio Olimpico and made the Czech tactician’s return with the Rossoblu surely one to forget in a hurry as his side at times struggled to find their footing during spells of the match.
Did we get our ratings right? Have your say in the comments below.
Roma
Morgan De Sanctis –7–Alert
Wasn’t tested much by his opponents, but nonetheless didn’t fall asleep at his post and was quick to deal with any threat thrown his way.
Maicon –8–Exuberant
The Brazilian was full of energy that belied his advancing years and was excellent in defense as well as providing great support for his team’s attack during his forays forward.
Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa –7–Promising
A great Serie A debut for the new signing and seems to be quickly adjusting to life in the Italian league.
Konstantinos Manolas –8–Titanic
Stood strong to nullify Sau’s attacking threat, something that is much easier said than done, generally.
Ashley Cole –7–Reliable
The ex-Chelsea man showed why he’s rated as one of the best in the game in his position and rarely put a foot wrong this afternoon.
Radja Nainggolan –6–Contributed
Solid, if not spectacular showing for the Belgian as he put in his dues to help his side record another win.
Daniele De Rossi –8–Strong
Stood strong in the middle of the park for Roma as the team’s midfield general and had a great performance throughout his time on the pitch.
Seydou Keita –7–Experienced
Showed his experience and expertise as he went through his duties efficiently on an overall solid afternoon.
Alessandro Florenzi –7–Bright
Burst out of the gates during the opening third of the game to grab a much deserved goal and generally made a nuisance of himself for the Cagliari defense during an excellent performance for Rudi Garcia’s men.
Mattia Destro –7–Clinical
A fantastic opening goal to kick things off and a good overall showing, but was lagging in energy later on before being substituted off.
Gervinho –7–Energetic
Another good display from the Ivorian, who was full of energy in the first 45 but like many of his colleagues, began to ease his foot off the gas as the game went on.
Subs
Miralem Pjanic –6–Solid
Brought on for Destro to solidify things and had an overall decent outing to finish out the game.
Adem Ljajic –5–Negligible
Came on for goal-scorer Florenzi and contributed little, if nothing to his team’s cause.
Urby Emanuelson — N/A
Late sub, came on in 82nd minute.
Cagliari
Alessio Cragno –5–Debutant
Made his first ever appearance in Italy’s top football flight and conceded two goals. Surely not an afternoon he’ll want to remember too fondly.
Francesco Pisano –3–Ineffective
A poor showing in which he failed to find his footing defensively nor contribute anything offensively.
Luca Rossettini –6–Stalwart
Stood strong in the heart of defense, and dealt adequately with some of the threat posed to him by Roma’s attack.
Luca Ceppitelli –5–Decent
Put himself about adequately and showed some threat in the air while getting involved in set-pieces.
Danilo Avelar –6–Ambitious
Had a solid game down his flank, attempting here and there to feed his teammates but nothing came to fruition.
Joao Pedro –4–Restrained
The Brazilian was handed a surprise start by Zeman but was well-marshalled by Roma’s midfield and was unable to establish himself in the game.
Daniele Conti –4–Miserable
Like his midfield colleague, was hassled and harried by the Giallorossi’s midfield marshals and as a result, misplaced quite a few passes in a game to forget for him.
Albin Ekdal –4–Faded
Started off well but saw his performance levels drop drastically and was eventually hauled off in favor of Daniele Dessena.
Diego Farias –5–Nullified
Buzzed about but was unable to contribute anything of note to the team’s effort as they tried to get themselves back into the game.
Marco Sau –5–Restricted
Was largely shackled by Roma’s Manolas and improved somewhat during the second half, but had little impact nonetheless.
Victor Ibarbo –6–Frustrated
Attempted to cause problems with his power and pace, but was let down largely by his supporting cast. A frustrating afternoon for the Colombian.
Subs
Antonio Balzano –5–Harried
Came on for the ineffective Pisano and while overall better than his colleague, still faced some difficulties down his flank.
Daniele Dessena –4–Forgettable
An afternoon to forget.
Samuele Longo –6–Effort
Came on in lieu of Farias and tested De Sanctis on a couple of occasions.
