Dzeko, Florenzi secure all-important victory for AS Roma over Juventus (Match Report)

Goals from Edin Dzeko and Alessandro Florenzi were all AS Roma needed to defeat Juventus as the Giallorossi stay in the fight for fourth to be in the race for Europe.

Dzeko provided an assist for Alessandro Florenzi and scored the second.

Cuadrado should’ve scored after six minutes when sent clear by Emre Can, but Antonio Mirante scrambled across for a fantastic save on the tap-in.

Mirante performed a truly special reaction save to palm Dybala’s curler out of the far top corner after a great solo run from Cristiano Ronaldo.

However, Juve were almost caught out on the counter, Lorenzo Pellegrini’s cross-shot bouncing off the bar with Wojciech Szczesny beaten.

Pellegrini had another attempt on the turn that flashed just wide, but Mirante again came to the rescue with a save that palmed Dybala’s strike on to the inside of the upright to bounce back out.

Giorgio Chiellini made a decisive block as Stephan El Shaarawy traded passes with Edin Dzeko to sprint down the left and cut inside, his shot charged down by the Juve captain.

Blaise Matuidi made a decisive interception to prevent Dzeko tapping in an El Shaarawy cross straight after the restart, then the Little Pharaoh failed to make the most of a double opportunity.

Ronaldo had the ball in the net on 64 minutes when running on to a Dybala pass in midfield, but he had started from a position that was inches offside.

The game somehow remained goalless, as in the space of 60 seconds Mirante used his legs to parry an Emre Can strike, then El Shaarawy’s curler was fingertipped over the bar and Lorenzo Pellegrini went off injured.

Roma eventually broke the deadlock with 10 minutes left on the clock. Florenzi exchanged passes with Dzeko to break down the right and as Szczesny came tearing out, he dinked the delicate and precise finish over the goalkeeper into the far bottom corner.

Juve tried to fight back, but Cuadrado slipped to spark a counter-attack and Cengiz Under rolled across for Dzeko to hit it first time past Szczesny for 2-0 in stoppages.

Photo Credit: asroma.com