Tuesday will be remembered as the night when Europe’s giants fell, as the Spanish, Italian, and French champions all failed to do enough to progress to the Champions League quarterfinals. Chelsea was the only reigning domestic champion to buck the trend, though Jose Mourinho’s men made hard work of battling underdog FC Porto, the champion of Portugal.
For Roma, which produced the kind of team performance Coach Luciano Spalletti must have dreamt about before the match, its 2-0 away victory over heavily favored Olympique Lyonnais represented the perfect execution of a game plan: concede possession, defend as a team and hit Lyon on the counter. Despite instances of suspect defending from set pieces, Roma executed its plan perfectly, scoring both goals through beautifully constructed counterattacks. The second goal featured a fantastic solo run from Brazilian Alessandro Mancini, who beat his defender with no less than five stopovers before thumping the ball into the roof of the net with his left foot.
The only stain on the night was the suspension of midfielder David Pizarro for the next match, and the possible loss of center back Christain Chivu, whose nose was fractured in an altercation with Lyon striker Fred. With the Serie A race effectively over, Roma has now positioned itself as a dark horse to win the Champions League.