Igor Tudor maintains Verona ‘dominated’ Roma and regrets fumbling a 2-0 lead, but reveals what Jose Mourinho said after the red card. ‘Coming from him, that means a lot.’
Hellas had taken a commanding 2-0 lead at the Stadio Olimpico through a well-worked free kick routine finalised by Antonin Barak and excellent team move scored by Adrien Tameze.
However, after Giovanni Simeone had another goal ruled offside, Roma came back to draw 2-2 with teenage substitutes Cristian Volpato and Edoardo Bove.
Serie A | Roma 2-2 Verona: Teenage substitutes rescue Mourinho
“We played a great game and there are regrets that we were unable to win,” Tudor told DAZN.
“We dominated everything except the final 20 minutes. It remains a strong performance and a good point away from home.”
The substitutions changed the game for both teams, as Verona sat back after removing Giovanni Simeone and Gianluca Caprari.
“There are few teams in better physical shape than us, but when you have a 2-0 lead, the dynamics change and you rest on your laurels a little bit.
“I just wanted to introduce two fresh players and give us more solidity in defence. We always play to win, but this was a more than creditable draw.”
Tudor was asked about the free kick routine that opened the scoring, with Marco Davide Faraoni feigning disinterest to gather in space and fire across from the right.
“Those routines rarely work so well, but we had prepared it during the week.”
Mourinho was sent off in stoppages for dissent, but before leaving the touchline, insisted on hugging Tudor. What did the Special One say?
“He congratulated me on my team’s performance, and coming from him, that means a lot.”
Mourinho refused to speak to the media after the game, storming off past the microphones and cameras.
Roma trail 2-0 at home to Verona after just 20 minutes! 😬
Adrien Tameze with an emphatic finish after a great cut-back from Gianluca Caprari! 💥 pic.twitter.com/E02T9QTLke
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 19, 2022