VENICE - AS Roma’s slump continued with a 3-2 Serie A defeat by lowly Venezia on Sunday, as the hosts recovered from surrendering the lead before halftime to launch a sensational second half fightback.
José Mourinho’s side have one win in their last seven games in all competitions and have dropped out of the top four after picking up four points from their last five league games.
“This is not the year to dream big, but it is up to me to raise the ambition and motivation. Our goal is fourth place, but for some reason we have slid to sixth," Mourinho told DAZN.
The home side went in front after three minutes through a Mattia Caldara volley, but Roma wrestled back control in the final few minutes of the first half with goals from Eldor Shomurodov and Tammy Abraham. However, a Mattia Aramu penalty and David Okereke strike saw Paolo Zanetti’s side flip the game on its head once more, earning Venezia a famous win that lifts them to 14th place with 12 points.
AS Roma vs. Venezia Highlights | 11/07/2021
Roma are fifth with 19 points, three points behind Atalanta in fourth, but will slide to sixth if their capital rivals Lazio win at home to second-bottom Salernitana later on Sunday. Mourinho has repeatedly complained about the lack of squad depth since taking over at the capital club in the close season, and returned to the theme again.
“We have evident problems. When you are building a team you start from an idea of the game. But the squad is unbalanced, there aren’t real options for every role," Mourinho said. "When you lose a player to injury or suspension, you have to become a coach who is capable of inventing something."
(Reporting by Alasdair Mackenzie; Editing by Ken Ferris)
