Roma vs Real Madrid Review
Real Madrid made a thrilling comeback from a two-goal deficit to beat AS Roma 4-3 at the Stadio Olimpico in the UEFA Champions League, extending Roma’s winless streak in European matches to five games (three draws, two losses). Jose Mourinho returned to a city where he remains highly regarded after leading Roma to Conference League victory four years ago, while Real Madrid aimed to improve their inconsistent away performance this season.
However, their start was far from convincing, as early opportunities went to Matias Soule and Paulo Dybala, and Thibaut Courtois had to make an excellent save to stop Mario Hermoso. Roma suffered a setback when Manu Kone had to leave the game due to injury, but that didn’t prevent the home team from taking a well-deserved lead in the 20th minute. Dybala regained possession in midfield, leading to Soule setting up Marten de Roon, whose deflected long-range shot flew past Courtois. Donyell Malen nearly doubled Roma’s advantage with a shot that almost slipped under Courtois, but it was Real Madrid who scored next through Kylian Mbappe.
The French captain celebrated his 100th Champions League appearance by scoring a deflected goal that looped over Pierluigi Gollini. Jude Bellingham nearly turned the game around in first-half stoppage time, firing wide from a Vinicius Junior cross after an engaging first half. However, Real failed to capitalize on that opportunity and were punished six minutes into the second half after a critical defensive error. Courtois’ pass to Vinicius Jr. was intercepted, and substitute Rodrigo Mora set up Malen for a close-range finish that took a slight deflection off Federico Valverde before settling inside the near post.
Malen then scored a third goal, which was alarmingly simple from Real’s perspective, as Soulé’s through ball completely broke their defense, allowing the Dutch forward to finish confidently. The visitors tried to respond when Yan Diomande’s straightforward through ball split Roma’s defense, enabling Mbappe to score, but the goal was disallowed due to an assistant referee’s offside flag. However, Los Blancos reduced the deficit in the 83rd minute when Carlos Espi capitalized on a rebound after Gollini could only deflect Endrick’s initial header into his path. The Brazilian then equalized two minutes later with a well-placed header from Guler’s corner, putting Roma under pressure.
Guler’s corners continued to trouble the Giallorossi defense, leading to a remarkable winning goal as Antonio Rudiger scored from another accurate delivery to complete the comeback. This outcome would have seemed almost impossible with just seven minutes remaining, but Real managed to claim all three points and secure their 20th victory in their last 22 Champions League matches against Italian teams. On the other hand, this result leaves Roma with four losses in their last six European home games (with two wins), marking a disappointing night for Gian Piero Gasperini’s squad.
