Rome, what are you doing? You threw it all away in the final minutes against Real. Italy’s fourth straight loss
A disastrous finish to the game cost Roma the victory against Real Madrid at the Olimpico. The Giallorossi were defeated 4-3 by the Blancos, who staged a lightning-fast comeback at the Olimpico by scoring three goals in the final minutes of the match, which was part of Matchday 2 of the Champions League group stage. It was a double blow for Gasperini, who also lost Dybala and Koné to injury. Italian teams lost all their matches this round, conceding a total of 14 goals across four games.
Roma controlled the game, while Real was clinical: the first half at the Olimpico ended 1-1. Gasperini’s team held the reins of the match and started strong, creating several chances early on through Soulé and Dybala. In the 16th minute, Gasperini was forced to substitute Koné due to a muscle injury, bringing on Pisilli. The teams traded goals in the 20th and 25th minutes: the home team took the lead through De Roon, who beat Courtois with a shot from outside the box, aided by a deflection; the visitors equalized five minutes later through Mbappé, who capitalized on a mistake by Hermoso to burst into the Giallorossi box and beat Gollini, on the Spaniards’ first real scoring chance. The pace slowed down toward the end of the half.
In the second half, Gasperini brought on Rodrigo Mora for the injured Dybala. Roma got off to a great start, with Malen running riot with two goals: in the 51st minute, set up by Mora, he beat Courtois with his left foot; in the 57th minute, he scored his third after a through ball from Soulé. The referee initially ruled it offside, but the VAR overturned the decision.
Real Madrid desperately tried to get back into the game (bringing on Endrick and Guler), but their efforts relied more on individual flashes of brilliance than organized play: Mbappé tried several times but without success; in the 69th minute, Diomande scored, but VAR ruled it out for offside. Mourinho played the Bernardo Silva card, bringing him on for Tchouameni, followed by Carlos Espi for Diomande and Carreras for Cucurella. Gasperini responded with a more defensive setup, bringing on Balerdi and Pellegrini for Mancini and Soulé.
Roma dropped too deep, and Real went on the attack, turning the game around in just two minutes: Carlos Espi scored the 2-3 off a corner kick, capitalizing on Gollini’s short clearance. In the 85th minute, the score is tied at 3-3: another corner kick, the Giallorossi defense falters, and Endrick heads in the equalizer, silencing the Olimpico. Gasperini’s team was on the ropes, and the Spaniards nearly scored the winning goal through Bellingham.
The Romans are on the ropes, and the visitors’ winning goal comes in the 90th minute—again off a corner kick. This time, it’s Rudiger who beats all the Giallorossi defenders to head in the final 4-3 goal. It’s a crushing blow for Roma fans who were already savoring victory.
