Fiorentina and Roma drew 1-1 at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in Serie A on Sunday evening.
Fiorentina were the first to go in front thanks to a well taken poacher’s goal from German striker Mario Gomez, before a second half strike from Adem Ljajic saw the player his team level with his former employers.
As the game wore on, so did the players legs, and both sides eventually settled for the 1-1 draw.
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Fiorentina
Ciprian Tatarusanu – 6.5 – Comfortable
Made a couple of decent saves on the night and expertly tipped over a header from a Roma corner. However, most of Roma’s shots were straight into the middle of the goal. Could do nothing to prevent Ljajic’s well-taken smash into the net.
Gonzalo Rodriguez – 4 – Uninvolved
Stood his ground well against a marauding Roma attack in the second half, but gave away some careless fouls and did little to spur his team on.
Jose Basanta – 4.5 – Beaten
Performed decently until he was outmuscled by the diminutive Iturbe, leading to Roma’s goal. Got himself involved in a couple of offensive plays as well.
Nenad Tomovic – 5.5 – Active
Very solid in defense and was tactically aware once Fiorentina shifted to a four man defense. Nearly scored in an advanced position from the top middle of the box.
David Pizarro – 7.5 – Engineer
Fashioned chance after chance for the Viola, including grabbing an assist for Gomez’s goal and creating countless other opportunities. Carved Roma open with his wonderful passing, but faded a little in the second half. Picked up a yellow card in the 57th minute.
Matias Fernandez – 4 – Missing
Did little of note and was rightfully substituted in the 63rd minute by Jasmin Kurtic. Should have scored a close range shot and later wildly smashed one off target. A night to forget for the midfielder.
Jaoquin – 6.5 – Trickster
Dribbled again and again around the Roma defense, especially beating Jose Holebas for pace. Roma were unable to cope with his runs down the flank.
Borja Valero – 4.5 – Struggling
Struggled to impose the tempo and rhythm in Fiorentina’s midfield. Passed the ball often without much of a purpose and couldn’t match his teammate Pizarro in vision on the night.
Manuel Pasqual – 5.5 – Busy
Involved in both the attacking and defensive phases of the game, and nearly earned himself a penalty after being fouled by Jose Holebas. And industrious performance.
Juan Cuadrado – 5.5 – Glimpse
Showed glimpses of his vast potential with speedy bursts down the wing and good movement to open space for Gomez. However, looked uncomfortable playing in a second striker position and was heavily marked all game.
Mario Gomez – 6.5 – Predator
Reminded the world why he was once considered a mainstay of the German national team by taking a poacher’s goal, latching on to Pizarro’s shot to divert it into the net. Caused Roma’s defense troubles with his smart runs behind.
Substitutes
Jasmin Kurtic – 5.5 – Upgrade
A great upgrade over the missing Matias Fernandez. Took a shot on the end of a wonderful counterattack minutes after his introduction.
Marcos Alonso – 5 – Effective
Brought on to replace Manuel Pasquel and shifted the defense to a back four with his introduction.
Karim Babacar – N/A
Brought on in the last ten minutes for Gomez, but didn’t have time to accomplish anything.
Roma
Morgan De Sanctis – 6.5 – Alert
Made numerous important saves even though there were long periods when the ball did not come his way. Rushed off his line to deny the Viola early on, and was solid afterwards. Not at fault for Gomez’s goal.
Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa – 6 – Hard
Marked Cuadrado well, but culpable of several fouls and received a yellow for his troubles.
Jose Holebas – 4 – Insecure
Poor on the night defensively. Couldn’t cope with Jaoquin’s pace and was beaten by him time and time again. Nearly conceded a penalty by bundling Pasqual over in the box.
Kostas Manalos – 4.5 – Absent
Rarely seen in action and was given the run around by Iturbe a couple times.
Radja Nainggolan – 6.5 – Powerful
A good performance from the midfielder, who’s grit proved effective in midfield. Almost scored with a header off a rare Roma corner, but saw his shot saved wonderfully by Tatarusanu.
Alessandro Florenzi – 6 – Unfinished
Kept the play going and and nearly scored in the 89th minute with a perfectly timed run behind the defense. However, he pulled his shot wide, summing up his night.
Kevin Strootman – N/A – Injured
Took a heavy knock early in the first half and tried to walk it off, but had to be substituted later by Pjanic. Will be worried especially since he has already injured the same knee.
Daniele De Rossi – 6 – Clean
Not his usual imposing self in midfield, but nevertheless did a good job sweeping up defensive errors and helping keep Pizarro from carving up Roma.
Juan Manuel Iturbe – 7 – Dribbler
Always looking to take his player on, and constantly troubled Roma’s fullbacks with his pace and skill. Wonderfully outmuscled Basanta and before squaring the ball to Ljajic for the goal.
Adem Ljajic – 7 – Goalscorer
Pushed forward as often as possible and was finally rewarded with a goal, smashed into the lower left corner. Always involved in the attacking buildup and continued counterattacks well.
Francesco Totti – 6 – Experienced
Used his experience to help feed balls to Ljajic and Iturbe, but was unable to get on the end of many attacking chances. Substituted for Mattia Destro late on.
Substitutes
Miralem Pjanic – 6.5 – Replacement
Had big shoes to fill when Strootman was injured early on, but played effectively and performed admirably despite being thrown on without warning.
Mattia Destro – N/A
Replaced Totti towards the end of the game.
Maicon – N/A
Subbed on for Ljajic in the 87th minute as the game winded down.
