Daniele De Rossi praises Paulo Dybala’s stellar performance following his hat-trick, which propelled Roma to victory against Torino. De Rossi commends Dybala, stating, “This is what great players do,” and expresses confidence, asserting that the team has “nothing to fear” as they prepare to face Brighton.
Under De Rossi’s leadership, Roma has maintained remarkable form, securing victories in all but one of their Serie A fixtures since his appointment following Jose Mourinho’s departure. Additionally, the team advanced to the Europa League Round of 16 after a tense penalty shootout triumph over Feyenoord.
For the match against Torino, De Rossi implemented several changes to the lineup, including handing first starts under his tenure to Chris Smalling and Evan Ndicka. Furthermore, he opted for a tactical adjustment, adopting a 3-5-2 formation.
“I told Rasmus Kristensen that it’s never over with Torino, they do not give up,” De Rossi said on DAZN.
“In a way, I like winning when you suffer to the end, but on the other we ought to kill games like this off earlier, because Toro will press you non-stop.”
It was Dybala who took the headlines and the match ball home, completing a hat-trick in the 3-2 victory over Torino.
“Champions are decisive in this sport and nobody can doubt that. It was a balanced first half, because Torino cause problems for everyone, and we knew it’d be tough after playing 120 minutes on Thursday.
“We did some good things, scored at the 40th and conceding immediately after that would knock anyone down, but instead we came back well.”
Under the management of De Rossi, Roma has emerged victorious in all but one of their Serie A fixtures. However, a recurring trend within these matches is their vulnerability in defense, often leading to conceding numerous goals.
“The first was a great goal from Duvan Zapata, you can only applaud that. If you analyse all the goals, you see that there is always something that can be done to avoid them, but imagine how boring if all games ended 0-0!
“This is what great players do, they score this type of goal. On the second, we could stop the ball coming in from the by-line with greater concentration, but we are working on it.”
De Rossi, who took over from Mourinho, had been employing the 4-3-3 formation, but for the first time this evening, he opted for the 3-5-2 formation.
“We were building from the back with four to draw out Torino’s wing-backs and create the space. I had asked Mancini, Smalling and Ndicka to do the same and they did well.
“Smalling’s injury had to be dealt with also on an emotional level. He is an exceptional lad and a great professional who really wanted to get back on the field. He played well and I honestly didn’t expect him to last as long as he did today.
“I also really liked that Lukaku came on and did what he does. Azmoun did well too, but at that moment I needed a striker like Romelu who could hold up the ball.”
This result puts Roma only four points adrift of fourth place and well in the hunt for a Champions League spot. Roma are in the Europa League Round of 16 against Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton and Hove Albion, so what does De Rossi expect?
“It is a strong and balanced side with a coach who remains one of the best. However, Roma have nothing to fear, because we are every big as strong.
“Maybe some games are easier to prepare than others and Brighton might cause me a few sleepless nights, but we have to find the right solutions.
“I doubt Roberto was very happy with the draw either. We get along well and we talked the first day, but that’s all. I always try to copy from the best and he is one of the best.”