Juventus stretched their unbeaten Serie A run to 13 matches with a hard-earned 1-0 win against an uneventful Roma side on Saturday night. As expected, the Allianz Stadium showdown produced very few scoring opportunities, with Bianconeri coming out on top courtesy of Adrien Rabiot’s second-half winner.
Roma came into the game in a buoyant mood following last weekend’s 2-0 home victory against nine-man Napoli. Jose Mourinho’s side hoped to avoid losing back-to-back away league fixtures after a 2-0 defeat at Bologna. However, they had virtually nothing to offer in the front third.
Not only did Roma fail to attempt a shot on target in the first half, but they had Evan Ndicka’s off-the-line clearance to thank for heading into halftime on level terms. But only two minutes after the break, Adrien Rabiot fired Juventus 1-0 up.
A sluggish reaction from Roma’s backline gave the Frenchman enough time and space to pick his angles and beat Rui Patricio from point-blank range. Juventus’ opener failed to draw a reaction from Mourinho’s team, as Roma couldn’t create anything meaningful for the rest of the game.
It wasn’t a perfect way to close out 2023. Roma will enter the new calendar year five points adrift of the Serie A top four.
Let’s look at our player ratings.
Roma (3-5-2)
Rui Patricio – 6.5
After a decent first-half performance, the veteran goalkeeper conceded a relatively cheap goal, with Rabiot beating him to his near post from an acute angle.
Gianluca Mancini – 6
One of the Roma captain’s worst showings this season! In addition to several overzealous challenges and erratic passes, he slipped at a crucial moment to let Dusan Vlahovic set up Rabiot for the winner.
Diego Llorente – 6
Like his fellow defensive colleague, the Spaniard struggled against the Juventus frontman, losing virtually every battle on the ground, though he made up for those mishaps with a dominant aerial display.
Evan Ndicka – 7
Not only did he pull off the abovementioned clear off the line, but his last-ditch defending helped Roma survive several scary moments in the second half.
Rasmus Kristensen – 5.5
Completely useless in attack, the Dane fought tooth and nail to repair his image at the back. But when Roma needed him to provide depth on the right-hand side, he was slow and reckless.
Bryan Cristante – 5.5
While no one can argue about the combative midfielder’s commitment, he had no clue what to do when he had the ball in his possession.
Leandro Paredes – 6
Slightly better than his Italian counterpart but still not decisive enough, as his bleak performance contributed to Roma’s disappointing offensive effort.
Edoardo Bove – 5.5
Often lacked guile despite finding himself in some promising positions in the first half and gradually disappeared from the game as the contest progressed.
Nicola Zalewski – 5
Like Kristensen on the right, it’s hard to remember any meaningful touch with the ball the Pole had to offer this evening.
Paulo Dybala – 6.5
Undoubtedly Roma’s most creative player! A final touch let him down on several occasions, but he was still the only visiting forward with any real ambition to beat Wojciech Szczesny.
Romelu Lukaku – 5.5
Cut off from the rest of the pack, the Belgian had no impact on the game whatsoever.
Substitutes
Lorenzo Pellegrini – 5.5
Stephan El Shaarawy – 5.5
Sardar Azmoun – 6
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