Roma were held to a 1-1 draw by Atalanta in their Serie A clash at Stadio Olimpico on Sunday afternoon.
Francesco Totti and German Denis exchanged first half penalties in a scrappy game that Roma dominated but continuously found themselves unable to break down a stubborn Atalanta defence.
Rudi Garcia’s side showed intent from the kick-off and they were rewarded within three minutes as Guglielmo Stendardo handled in the box, allowing to Totti confidently send Marco Sportiello the wrong way from the spot.
Juan Iturbe could have doubled the lead almost immediately, but his heavy touch allowed the keeper to deny the Argentine a sight at goal.
The Orobici were frustrating the hosts, matching them in midfield and found themselves on level terms after 23 minutes.
A swift break saw Urby Emanuelson break into the Roma box, he was then brought down just inside the area following a clumsy challenge from Davide Astori and Denis dispatched the resulting kick.
The Giallorossi had more of the ball, but could not make it count when it mattered most as both Alessandro Florenzi and Totti were inches away from guiding home teasing crosses.
Florenzi managed to test Sportiello after latching onto a weak back-pass, however the youngster had the angle covered.
Both sides continued to waste promising positions, especially from set-pieces as on multiple occasions, dangerous deliveries went untouched in the area.
The hosts continued to be frustrated by an organised and stubborn Atalanta defence after the break as the visitors seemed happy to soak up the pressure and attempt to hit Roma on the break.
When the Giallorossi eventually managed to force Sportiello into making saves, but efforts from Radja Nainggolan and Florenzi were comfortably handled by the 22-year-old.
As the game progressed, it became a far more scrappy affair with both sides starting to lose their discipline and referee Andrea Gervasoni was busy in handing out a number of yellow cards.
Vasilis Torosidis wasted a golden chance as he fired straight at Sportiello from just inside the area following Totti’s through-ball.
Giulio Migliaccio found himself in the perfect place to deny Torosidis a goal after Sportiello had parried Ljajic’s low effort into the middle of a packed area as Roma began to raise their game heading into the last ten minutes.
Florenzi flashed another shot wide of the far post amid incessant pressure from the hosts, however, ultimately the Giallorossi were left to rue their missed opportunities as they failed to overtake their cross-city rivals, Lazio, into second place.
