Roma survived a second half fightback to beat Torino 3-2 and end the visitors’ unbeaten away record in an entertaining encounter that marked the return of Serie A for 2019.
Nicolo Zaniolo’s superb strike and an Aleksander Kolarov penalty put the Giallorossi in command at the interval, but Toro drew level thanks to Tomas Rincon and Cristian Ansaldi strikes, before Stephan El Shaarawy restored Roma’s lead in the final quarter.
It was the first time Torino have lost on their travels this season and marked a ninth consecutive Serie A loss for the Granata away to the Lupi.
Zaniolo put the hosts in front with a quarter of an hour gone when he showed wonderful improvisation to gather the rebound from his own shot while on the ground in a crowded box, before pivoting and smashing a shot past Salvatore Sirigu.
Things got worse for Walter Mazzarri’s men just after the half-hour mark when Roma were awarded a penalty after substitute Stephan El Shaarawy was brought down by Sirigu. Kolarov stepped up and coolly stroked the ball into the bottom corner.
However, Torino pulled themselves back into contention just six minutes into the second half when Rincon curled a shot into the corner from outside the area and the comeback was completed when Ansaldi smashed a volley in from range with 22 minutes left to play.
Parity lasted just six minutes though as El Shaarawy put Roma back in front after 74 minutes, latching onto Lorenzo Pellegrini’s through ball and showing good composure to finish past Sirigu.
Going places
The sky appears to be the limit for young Nicolo Zaniolo, who has become a firm fan favourite among Romanisti during his breakout season.
The midfielder’s opening goal demonstrated remarkable awareness and creativity, not to mention the balance and agility required to pull off such an audacious move.
Roma may well be feeling pleased with themselves for arguably getting the better end of the deal that took Radja Nainggolan to Inter and Zaniolo to the capital in the summer, with the Belgian struggling and the youngster showing great promise.
Record breakers
All good things come to an end and for Torino, making it this far through a season without losing an away game was already an impressive feat.
They finally fell at the Olimpico on Saturday, having previously held the likes of Lazio, Milan, Inter and Atalanta and beaten Sampdoria on their travels this season.
The problem for Walter Mazzarri now is what the result could mean for their European aspirations. Six points now separate them from Roma and the final Europa League place is four points adrift, although Milan, Lazio, Sampdoria, Atalanta and Fiorentina are yet to play this round.
With Inter and Napoli coming up in the Granata’s next four games, they could find themselves out of the running by the end of February if they’re not careful.
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com