Serie B minnows Spezia have knocked Roma out of the Coppa Italia on penalties after a goalless draw at the Stadio Olimpico.
The two sides were inseparable for 120 minutes of regulation time in a match lacking quality, before the second tier club came away 4-2 winners in the shootout.
Spezia had already seen off Brescia, top flight Frosinone and Salernitana to reach this stage, whereas this was the Giallorossi’s first game of the tournament.
Serie B minnows Spezia have knocked Roma out of the Coppa Italia on penalties after a goalless draw at the Stadio Olimpico.
The two sides were inseparable for 120 minutes of regulation time in a match lacking quality, before the second tier club came away 4-2 winners in the shootout.
Spezia had already seen off Brescia, top flight Frosinone and Salernitana to reach this stage, whereas this was the Giallorossi’s first game of the tournament.
A quarter-final clash with giant killers Alessandria, who have already knocked out Palermo and Genoa, now awaits for Spezia.
It took 25 minutes for Roma to produce the first real chance of the game, as Salih Ucan picked the ball up and fired a shot narrowly wide from just outside the box.
Only a minute later the visitors almost took a shock lead when Mario Situm’s shot from distance was parried by Morgan De Sanctis and it took a last-gasp intervention from LeandroCastan to deny the onrushing Nene from tapping in.
The Giallorossi had the ball in the back of the net on the 34th minute after a neat exchange of passes, but Edin Dzeko was marginally offside before applying the finish and it was well spotted by the officials.
Nene latched onto a long ball on the hour mark and moved into the area, but his snapshot couldn’t find the target from an awkward angle.
On the 81st minute Catellani raced through on goal for the visitors and it took a superb covering tackle from Antonio Rudiger to prevent his shot hitting the target, before the defender again charged down a dangerous effort two minutes later.
Ucan almost grabbed a dramatic last-minute winner when his long-range strike stung the palms of the flying Chichizola, but the tie was destined for extra time.
Miralem Pjanic’s deep hanging cross was met by Dzeko midway through the first half of extra time, but the Bosnian’s header was too weak from eight yards to worry the keeper.
The tie went to the lottery of a penalty shootout, and misses from Miralem Pjanic and Edin Dzeko in the hosts' first two attempts were enough to consign them to defeat, with the visitors scoring from all four of their efforts.
Roma 0-0 Spezia (2-4 pens)
Roma: De Sanctis; Maicon, Castan, Rudiger, Emerson (Digne 79); Pjanic, Vainqueur (De Rossi 64), Ucan, Iturbe (Florenzi 60), Dzeko, Salah
Spezia: Chichizola; Martic, Valentini, Terzi, Migliore; Misic (Ciurria 78), Brezovec (Juande 66), Canadjija, Situm; Catellani (Acampora 98), Nene
Ref: Di Bello