Random Rants On The Beautiful Game: Roma will need time to recover from Man. U. rout.

Roma will need time to recover from Man. U. rout.

By Chris Courtney
SoccerTimes

ROME (Monday, April 16, 2007) -- Leaving the Stadio Olimpico yesterday one would never know the home side, AS Roma, had just won 4-0 over Sampdoria. A hushed tone fell over 40,000 Roma fans as they shuffled their way to the buses and trams to carry them home. There was no singing, no dancing and few smiles to be seen. It seems the pain of their 7-1 Champions League loss to Manchester United last week will take much time to heal.

After beating the English premiership leaders 2-1 at home, Roma fans knew the away leg would be tough, but not as tough as it turned out. Their side's lack of defensive organization and collapse of confidence was too much for the fans back in Rome. As the Manchester United score tally climbed north of five, one could hear television sets being switched off all over the city.

When one moves to Rome, one of the first questions neighbors ask is which side you support, Roma or Lazio? One doesn't want to give the wrong answer, lest his welcome to the neighborhood might run out too quickly. For most people within the city, Roma is their team. Those who live in the suburbs or surrounding countryside support Lazio. I live in a Roma neighborhood and on most weekends (when the games are televised), I can hear the drama. When the team scores, one can hear shouts through the windows. When a shot goes wide, groans of disappointment ring out. A defensive gaffe earns a string of comments and corrections in organization.

Let's face it, Manchester United took Roma behind the woodshed and gave it a beating that hurt its fans to watch. It turned out to be Roma's worst loss in 57 years - ouch! The morning after the Champions League loss, the normally boisterous city was quieter than usual. The normal morning groups of people chatting loudly at the neighborhood café were few and far between. The fruit stand across the street, run by a die-hard Roma fan, did not even open for the day as many businesses were missing employees who called in sick. Central defender Phillipe Mexes (who was beaten twice for goals) apologized to the fans and begged their forgiveness. The team had no choice but to bounce back.

Yesterday, Roma dominated mid-table Sampdoria and never looked to be in any great danger as it poured four goals into Luca Castellazzi's net. Mr. Roma himself, Francesco Totti, who called the loss in Manchester the "saddest night of my career," responded by tallying two goals. Despite many opportunities to counterattack, Roma went to great efforts to play within itself. No doubt coach Luciano Spalletti stressed to his team that it remain composed and play to its tempo.

Looking extremely focused, but seeming to play at only 80 percent, Roma slowly ground down Sampdoria's defenses and kept possession for most of the match, scoring when it wanted. The home fans sang and rejoiced, but once the final whistle had blown, they remembered the night in Manchester, again. "The only way we'll get over that loss is to win the Coppa Italia final. Otherwise, maybe next year it won't hurt so much" opined Alessandro, a Roma local. Indeed, with Serie A leader Inter Milan still 15 points ahead of second-place Roma, the Coppa Italia final (against Inter) is its final chance to add to the club's trophy case.

Of course, much of the fire in Manchester United's belly had to come from the videos of Roman police clubbing their fans in the stands at the Champions League match in Rome. After monitoring both the English and Italian media spin on what happened that night, my take is that the Roman police were provoked by the English fans (something that can be seen when viewing a more complete video), but that their response was excessive. At the same time, there is no excuse for the several reported instances in which visiting fans received knife wounds from Roma "Ultras."

These recent events, plus the death of a police officer at a match in Catania, along with last year's Serie A match-fixing scandals are certainly not helping Italy's cause as it campaigns to host the 2012 European championships. There is indeed much to admire in the Italian game -- a passion to play, great athleticism, something to share with the entire family and a true love of the game. Unfortunately, in the eyes of many, these features are being overshadowed by a small minority of malcontents.

Chris Courtney is SoccerTimes European correspondent and lives in Rome.

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