1-1, upset!Mourinho overturned, 61% possession and 13 shots still winless, Europa League or play-offs
The 2023/24 Europa League season continues, and for Roma, who fell short in the Europa League final last season and missed out on Champions League qualification, Jose Mourinho is back in action this season and will be looking to make a breakthrough in the competition. In the 5th round of the Europa League, Roma challenged Servette away, Llorente assisted Lukaku to break the deadlock in the first half, Betia equalized in the second half, Dybala missed a good chance to score, and finally Roma drew 1-1 away from Servette, losing points in two consecutive rounds, causing Roma to give up the top position, such a result may cause Roma to not be able to advance directly and will participate in the play-offs.
Away to Servette, Jose Mourinho lined up in a 3-5-2 formation, with Romelu Lukaku and Dybala up front, El Shaarawy, Oyar, Padras, Bovey, and Celik in midfield, Ndicka, Cristante, and Diego Llorente forming a defensive line, and Slavel guarding the goal. Servette lined up in a 4-4-2 formation, with Chris and Kutesa up front, Bolo, Odua, Timothy and Stevanovic in midfield, Antony, Yorne, Steve and Yoshigo Tonemoto forming the defence and Jeremy in goal.
In the 11th minute of the game, Servette attacked on the right, Stevanovic broke through and swept in front of the goal, and Bolo in the middle of the penalty area outflanked and pushed the ball off the crossbar with both hands by Slaver. Diego Llorente broke through the middle and slotted into the box, and Lukaku followed up with a non-stop shot to score as Roma got off to a dream start and gave Servette a 1-0 lead. In the 24th minute, Roma's attack made a comeback, Dybala broke through on the left and passed through, Shaarawy stepped forward and crossed, and Lukaku met the ball at the top of the arc and pushed it slightly high.
In the 36th minute, Roma continued to attack in front, Oyar received the ball from his teammates on the left side and swept in front of the goal, Dybala and Lukaku outflanked the ball before and after, and missed a good chance to score. In the 45th minute, Servette counterattacked, Kutesa broke into the box on the left and shot after deducting the defense, and Slavel flew to save.
In the second half, the two teams changed sides and fought again, in the 49th minute, Servete attacked on the right side and sent a cross, Cristante rose to the top in the penalty area, Betia stopped the ball in front of the goal and scored a goal, Servette equalized, 1-1 Roma. In the 63rd minute, Roma attacked in front, Dybala and Lukaku hit the wall, Lukaku made the ball, Dybala followed up with an angle volley and missed a good opportunity. In the 72nd minute, Lukaku sent a through ball in the middle of the advance, and Dybala stepped forward into the box and pushed the shot to be confiscated by the goalkeeper.
In the 86th minute, Lukaku sent a through pass at the edge of the penalty area in the middle of the crowd, and Pellegrini stepped forward in the box to face two defenders and forced a strong shot to miss, and finally Roma drew 1-1 with Servette away, and won two consecutive rounds of Europa League without a win, only 1 point.
According to the post-match statistics, Roma had 61% possession and only 2 shots on target from 13 shots on goal, while Servette's possession rate was only 39%, but there were 13 shots on goal with 6 shots on target higher than Roma. After this campaign, Roma accumulated 10 points and ranked second in the group, 2 points behind Slavia Prague, in the final round, Roma will return to the home game against Sherif Sharif, even if it wins, it may not be able to advance directly, it is very likely that the second group will participate in the play-offs, and will face the third place in the Champions League group, adding suspense to the promotion.