Serie A – Roma vs Lazio: Having suffered a loss in the reverse fixture, Roma needed the win not just to stop their rivals from completing the double. The contest was also a must-win for them to secure a spot in the top six.
Tammy Abraham put the hosts ahead within the opening minute, from a short-ranged attempt from a corner. The Englishman got on the score sheet once again through a short-range attempt from Kardorp’s assist.
Pellegrini’s beauty from a set-piece in the 40th minute gave Giallorossi the 3-0 result.
Following the contest, Roma are now 6th in the league table, two points ahead of 7th place Lazio.
Serie A – Roma vs Lazio: Match report
Roma: Patricio 7, Mancini 7, Smalling 7, Ibanez 7, Karsdorp 8, Mkhitaryan 8, Cristante 6, Sergio Oliveira 6, Zalewski 7, Pellegrini 8, Abraham 9.
Subs: Vina 6, Bove N/A, Veretout N/A.
Bookings: Mancini, Karsdorp, Zalewski, Oliveira.
Scorers: Abraham (1’, 22’), Pellegrini 40’.
Lazio: Strakosha 5, Hysaj 5, Felipe 6, Acerbi, Marusic 5, Milinkovic-Savic 6, Leiva 4, Alberto 5, Felipe Anderson 4, Immobile 6, Pedro 5.
Subs: Lazzari 5, Cataldi 6, Romero 5.
Bookings: Pedro, Leiva, Patric.
Managers’ reaction
Roma’s José Mourinho: “Great performance, the victory against Atalanta was already solid, with a team that knew what it had to do to beat this particular opponent. Today was really special, it felt like everything we worked on and prepared, the lads put it all onto the pitch.
“Lazio tried to get a better result in the second half, played with the pride of a team in the derby, but they never really threatened and again my men deserve credit for that.”
Lazio’s Maurizio Sarri: “I can’t even talk about the team’s approach. I can only talk about a reaction because we immediately conceded a goal.
“That goal took the wind out of our sails, and we didn’t have the strength to get back into the game. We just lowered our heads and this made the defeat inevitable.
“I think it’s a matter of nerves. We made so many mistakes which we normally do not make. It wasn’t normal. There were 90 minutes left to play, but we just couldn’t do it.
“This is a team that reacts when it suffers a defeat like the one we suffered today. So this leaves us hoping for the best in the weeks to come.”
