Roma and Sassuolo only had 6 wins from their 17 league games in 2018 prior to this match. Both of them failed to win against Turinese clubs in the previous game week of Serie A, and none of them wanted to fail in this festive season. Roma proved they are the better side with a dominant 3–1 win over Roberto De Zerbis side. This piece will provide you with a tactical analysis on how the match unfolded.
Starting XI
Roma lined up in a more offensive 4–2–3–1, moving from the 5–3–2 they used previously against Juventus. Davide Santon had to make way for Diego Perotti, who played as LW in this match. Nicolo Zaniolo moved up just behind the main striker, Patrik Schick, while Bryan Cristante and Steven NZonzi provided balance in midfield. Big names like Edin Dzeko, Javier Pastore, and Stephan El Shaarawy had to start the game from the bench.
Even though the lineup above showed Sassuolo used 4–2–2–2, they actually played in a 4–3–3 shape with the trio of Mehdi Bourabia-Francesco Magnanelli-Filip Djuricic in the engine room. Enrico Brignola and Federico Berardi provided width while Khouma Babacar played alone up top. Sassuolos bench was filled with some interesting names like Alessandro Matri, Manuel Locatelli, and Federico Di Francesco (son of Romas manager, Eusebio).
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