Eusebio Di Francesco admits Napoli “deserved a point” and explains Roma’s rather defensive approach was dictated by injuries.
The Giallorossi took an early lead through Stephan El Shaarawy, but then defended for most of the game until capitulating to a late Dries Mertens equaliser.
Eusebio Di Francesco admits Napoli “deserved a point” and explains Roma’s rather defensive approach was dictated by injuries.
The Giallorossi took an early lead through Stephan El Shaarawy, but then defended for most of the game until capitulating to a late Dries Mertens equaliser.
“It’s disappointing we conceded at the 90th, even if admittedly Napoli deserved a point. Unfortunately, when we played with so many players not in good shape, it inevitably made it difficult,” the Coach told Sky Sport Italia after a 1-1 draw.
“We did far better with Daniele De Rossi, but once he had to come off, we were unable to break Napoli’s moves down and they pinned us back more.
“It’s worth noting we also had chances in the second half, but overall Napoli did enough to deserve a draw. I thought it was an excellent performance that saw us united, combative and with everyone helping each other out. That’s a great step forward for our 12th game of the season with many new players.
“We have players who are still trying to absorb the tactical directives and also the challenges of playing for a club like Roma. I thought we defended very well against a Napoli side in excellent shape.
“We lost Kostas Manolas too towards the end and there are only so many key players we can lose.”
Di Francesco confessed some of Roma’s attitude was planned, but he wouldn’t recommend doing it too often.
“When we played continually short and horizontal passes, we invite them forward to press us. If we vary our passing, we can create some unpredictability and stretch them out.
“The important thing was to allow few through channels. We allowed Napoli more crosses, as we knew they only had Arkadiusz Milik to aim for and we are strong in the air.
“However, this team is not built to defend deep and loses its identity when it is pinned back. I prefer us to keep possession and be pro-active, but in the circumstances we had to make do with Plan B.”