STADIO MARC’ANTONIO BENTEGODI (Verona): AS Roma needed goals in the 88th and 92nd minutes to overcome a stubborn Hellas Verona side in Serie A Matchday 12, despite the hosts playing with 10 men for an hour. The Giallorossi won 3-1 having fallen behind.
Verona had the better of the early exchanges and looked to put Roma under extreme pressure from the off, not giving their visitors the warmest of welcomes neither on the pitch nor in the stands. They got themselves in front through Pawel Dawidowicz.
But Dawidowicz was soon sent off for a dangerous and dangling leg that caught Zaniolo, leaving the Italian rolling around the Bentegodi surface.
Having angered the home Curva in front of him, Zaniolo’s every touch was met with deafening whistles. He answered those by turning in an equaliser before the break after Tammy Abraham had struck the post for the second time with a chance that he should have buried.
It wasn’t until the dying minutes that Cristian Volpato and Stephan El Shaarawy were able to put Roma in front and then kill the game off in stoppage time.
A sleepless Halloween night for Abraham
Tammy Abraham had a night to forget at the Bentegodi. The England striker was left wanting when in front of goal on as many as three occasions, even missing a completely open goal after having rounded Lorenzo Montipo in the Verona goal.
Somehow, having made a perfectly-timed run to go through on Montipo’s goal and expertly rounding the goalkeeper, Abraham saw his shot hit the outside of the post and go behind. From six yards and with the Verona goal gaping, it looked as though he couldn’t do anything other than score.
That miss was soon followed by another near-open goal passed up on. This time, though, the ball fizzed its way to him and he headed just off target – perhaps a more easily-forgiven error on his part.
Even for Zaniolo’s goal, the Italian was only afforded the chance as Abraham had sent another shot off the post. This time on the opposite side, Montipo left his near post unguarded but Abraham hit the inside of the woodwork and the ball went back across goal for Zaniolo to sweep home.
With the World Cup just around the corner and his place in the England squad far from guaranteed, Abraham will be looking to put his problems in front of goal behind him sooner rather than later.
