Luciano Spalletti concedes 10-man Roma were naïve in their 1-1 draw at Porto, but “I got confirmation that I have a strong side.”
Felipe’s own goal seemed to put the Giallorossi on the right track, but Thomas Vermaelen saw red just 41 minutes into his competitive debut.
Under pressure for the entire second half, Roma emerged with a 1-1 draw from the Estadio do Dragao following Andre Silva’s penalty.
Luciano Spalletti concedes 10-man Roma were naïve in their 1-1 draw at Porto, but “I got confirmation that I have a strong side.”
Felipe’s own goal seemed to put the Giallorossi on the right track, but Thomas Vermaelen saw red just 41 minutes into his competitive debut.
Under pressure for the entire second half, Roma emerged with a 1-1 draw from the Estadio do Dragao following Andre Silva’s penalty.
They have a creditable 1-1 away result going into the second leg of this Champions League play-off, at the Stadio Olimpico next Tuesday.
“I am very happy with the performance. It was the first official match of the season and a pleasure in general to see them on the field," the Coach told Mediaset Premium.
“If I have to be the Coach who analyses the match, something becomes fundamental. After taking the lead in the first half, we lost the ball cheaply by trying to force the situation when we could’ve invited Porto forward and make the most of the spaces.
“Instead we forced the situation and a team like ours cannot do that. We received cards that were avoidable and put us under extra pressure throughout the game.
“We started very well, always played the ball, fought hard and I really liked the team.
“From the outside it might look like a physical issue, but we lost the ball too easily for the quality we’ve got and handed the reins to Porto. I’ve said many times that physical duels, contrasts, keeping the ball and above all having to chase the ball can transform a match. That’s what transformed Roma’s season last term.”
Spalletti was angry last term at his side for celebrating a slender defeat to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, so how does he feel now?
“In the locker room we had to re-organise our ideas based on what happened. Mohamed Salah and Edin Dzeko, who I thought had a great game overall, worked hard. Dzeko tried to avoid being brought down for a penalty, but in the end that was penalising because it was a fantastic chance.
“I am on Dzeko’s side all year, he can do what he wants! Let nobody try to create a duel here.
“I knew I had a strong side and tonight I got confirmation of that.”
Spalletti was again critical of his players for being naïve and not forcing Porto to come out of their shells.
“We tried to take the initiative throughout the first half, even after going in front, so Porto decided to back up and go into their midfield. That makes it harder for us to find space.
“In that situation, we could’ve just kept the ball, but instead we tried to play some vertical passes that were cut out easily and just gave them back the ball.
“Porto have quality, they have the ball to feet and put it over the defence every time. We rather fell into their trap and played their game.
“The Porto defence was always on the edge of their own box, so in those situations it’s better to play the ball to feet.”
Vermaelen was brought in for his experience, but was sent off on his debut after two yellow cards.
“Vermaelen is a player with experience, but the first booking was worse than the second. He had to risk something on the second, although he allowed the opponent to attack the space.
“After about 20 minutes we had both centre-backs booked and considering the football we were playing and the way we were dominating, we absolutely cannot be in that situation.”