Roma continued their flawless performance in the 2023/24 UEFA Europa League (UEL) group stage, securing a relatively comfortable victory against Slavia Prague with two early goals.
The atmosphere before the match was charged with the bitter memories of a heart-wrenching extra-time defeat to Jiri Vavra’s goal in the 1995/96 UEFA Cup.
However, Roma’s current squad wasted no time seeking revenge.
In the very first minute, Stephan El Shaarawy set up Edoardo Bove, who unleashed a remarkable long-range shot into the far corner of Ales Mandous’ net, making it Bove’s third consecutive opening goal.
La Lupa’s dream started to improve further in the 17th minute.
Slavia mistake allowed Roma to initiate an attack from the back.
El Shaarawy, with his quick thinking, played a clever pass to put Romelu Lukaku through the defensive lines. Lukaku, with his powerful prowess, charged towards the goal and slotted the ball into the net at the near post with his left foot, maintaining his perfect scoring record in the UEL group stage.
Lukaku continued to trouble Slavia throughout the first half, although the Czech team was fortunate to trail only 2-0 at halftime, with a low shot from Mick van Buren narrowly deflected wide by Mile Svilar.
While the second half didn’t see a repetition of Roma’s explosive start, both teams maintained a consistent passing tempo. El Shaarawy struck the crossbar after a pass from Zeki Celik, while Slavia’s Ivan Schranz missed a chance to score, which was their best opportunity until that point.
With one eye perhaps focused on their upcoming challenging match against Inter Milan, Roma seemed content to allow Slavia more possession, limiting the Czech team to long-range attempts.
In reality, there was little doubt about Roma’s third consecutive victory in the UEL group stage, marking their sixth consecutive win overall.
Their impeccable home record against Czech teams remained unblemished. Despite their early mistakes, Slavia is still comfortably positioned in second place, with a five-point lead, as Servette and Sheriff Tiraspol played to a 1-1 draw in another match.