A Tammy Abraham brace helped Roma to an emphatic 4-1 victory away to Atalanta in Serie A action on Saturday afternoon in Bergamo.
It was a classic counter-attacking masterclass by Jose Mourinho’s side as they were able to shoot four past ‘keeper Juan Musso despite having just 29% possession.
Atalanta deployed their usual high line as Roma looked to sit deep and absorb pressure. It worked excellently for the Giallorossi in the opening half an hour as they were able to effectively hit the hosts on the counter and establish a two-goal lead through a goal inside the first minute by Abraham and Nicolo Zaniolo’s first goal since July 2020.
An own-goal by Bryan Cristante pulled one back for Atalanta but Roma were able to see out the match in the second half as fellow Englishman Chris Smalling got on the scoresheet, before Abraham secured his brace and the three points for Roma late on. So, let’s get into our player ratings for this one.
Atalanta
Juan Musso – 5
Conceded four goals and did not make many saves throughout but was not at fault. Difficult day for the Argentinian.
Rafael Toloi – 7
Looked to advance forward and help out offensively when given the opportunity. Composed in possession and looked decent defensively, despite his side conceding four times.
Jose Luis Palomino – 6
Sloppy in possession and fairly standard at the back. Not the best of performances.
Berat Djimsiti – 5
Perhaps could have been stronger in the tackle to try and deny Zaniolo for his goal. Subbed off in the first half for Luis Muriel.
Hans Hateboer – 6.5
Linked-up well down the right flank with Ilicic in the first half. Was unfortunate as Abraham’s effort for the opening goal deflected off him as he slid in to try and deny the forward.
Marten De Roon – 7.5
Kept the ball well and made a few decent challenges in the midfield, also helped back in the defense. Completed the most passes on the pitch and also created a couple of chances.
Remo Freuler – 6.5
Fairly solid display but his midfield counterpart was superior. Still retained possession fairly well but did not impose as much of an impact.
Giuseppe Pezzella – 7
Solid performance as he did well up against Rick Karsdorp and was accurate in possession. Also won the most duels in the match with 13 and was also the most fouled player on the pitch.
Mario Pasalic – 5
Struggled to get involved throughout his time on the pitch here before being subbed off for Aleksei Miranchuk shortly after an hour of play.
Duvan Zapata – 6.5
Involved and held the ball up well. Good all-round center-forward play in the first half but struggled to create or get on the end of too many chances. A frustrating day for the Colombian.
Josip Ilicic – 7.5
Picked the ball up from deep to get a hold of possession and create for Atalanta. Great ball in behind the Roma defense to set up a good opportunity for Toloi in the first half. Surprisingly subbed off at half time for Ruslan Malinovskyi after creating the most chances in the first forty five.
Substitutions
Luis Muriel – 6
His deflected effort gave Atalanta a way back into the match, making the score 2-1 Roma as the first half came to a close.
Ruslan Malinovskyi – 6.5
Made a couple attempts from range when he came on, one which forced a decent save by Rui Patricio. Tried to make things happen but was a little sloppy in possession.
Aleksei Miranchuk 5.5
Had a couple of shots from range and tried to make things happen when he came on but failed to make a substantial impact.
Joachim Maehle – N/A
Davide Zappacosta – N/A
No Roma player has scored more Serie A goals than Tammy Abraham this season (5).
It took him just 53 seconds to open the scoring against Atalanta this afternoon. ⏱ pic.twitter.com/IflhD7119W
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 18, 2021
Roma
Rui Patricio – 7
Decent save to deny an effort by Toloi in the first half. Could do very little about Atalanta’s goal as Muriel’s effort deflected off of Bryan Cristante. Tipped over a dangerous shot from Malinovskyi in the second half and he did well throughout when called upon.
Gianluca Mancini – 8
Solid throughout and made a few good tackles and interceptions. Atalanta struggled to get much going down his side of the defense.
Chris Smalling – 7.5
Looked solid at the back and made a few good challenges throughout but was not as prominent in defense as Mancini. Restored Roma’s two-goal advantage with less than 20 minutes remaining, getting on the end of a great free kick into the box by Jordan Veretout.
Roger Ibanez – 6
Struggled a little bit up against Ilicic and Hateboer in the first half. Booked early on in the second half for a poor challenge and was a little shaky throughout.
Rick Karsdorp – 6.5
Provided some good width and pace on the counter at times for Roma. Did not have too much to do defensively.
Jordan Veretout – 7.5
Scarcely involved in the first half but was influential in the build-up to Roma’s second goal by providing the assist for Zaniolo. Also provided the assist for Smalling’s goal as whipped in a good ball at the back post from a free kick.
Bryan Cristante – 6
Sloppy in possession and did not impose himself in the midfield battle. Disappointing performance.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 6.5
Had to sit deep here as he helped in the Roma midfield as the visitors struck on the counter. Was not involved too much.
Matias Vina – 6.5
Forced deep to help combat Ilicic at left wing-back in the first half. Made a couple of decent tackles.
Nicolo Zaniolo – 7
Looked to utilise his pace and get in behind the Atalanta defense. Put Roma 2-0 up inside half an hour after linking up well with Veretout and finishing cooly past Musso.
Tammy Abraham – 8
Held the ball up well and scored the opening goal inside the opening minutes. However, the goal was very messy and took several deflections before looping over Musso. Scored a brace here as he finished off a counter-attacking move late on with a superb finish.