Eusebio Di Francesco insists tactics are irrelevant when Roma drop a 2-0 lead to nine-man Cagliari. “It’s just absurd. It should be impossible.”
The Giallorossi were leading 2-0 at the Sardegna Arena thanks to Bryan Cristante and a deflected Aleksandar Kolarov free kick, but Artur Ionita nodded in to re-open the game.
After both Luca Ceppitelli and Darijo Srna were sent off for dissent, Marco Sau sprung the offside trap for an improbable 2-2 draw.
Eusebio Di Francesco insists tactics are irrelevant when Roma drop a 2-0 lead to nine-man Cagliari. “It’s just absurd. It should be impossible.”
The Giallorossi were leading 2-0 at the Sardegna Arena thanks to Bryan Cristante and a deflected Aleksandar Kolarov free kick, but Artur Ionita nodded in to re-open the game.
After both Luca Ceppitelli and Darijo Srna were sent off for dissent, Marco Sau sprung the offside trap for an improbable 2-2 draw.
“This team tried to kill off the game for 70 minutes, but what angers me is seeing naïve errors that create these absurd situations,” Di Francesco told Sky Sport Italia.
“I don’t even want to talk about tactics, because there are players here with the kind of experience that should make this impossible.
“You can’t concede a goal against nine men in the final minute because you don’t keep the ball under control. It’s not possible.
“There are opponents, you can suffer, even though we repeatedly wasted the chances to add a third goal. I saw in the final 20 minutes we weren’t sharp, we couldn’t keep hold of the ball.
“I changed to man-marking on set plays, knowing Cagliari were strong in these situations, but when there is a distraction, that makes no difference.
“I had few choices on the bench when it comes to attack, as Diego Perotti and Javier Pastore have been out for a long time and are in no condition to play 90 minutes.
“I am truly angry and upset at this draw, because it’s just absurd. You can’t let it happen, conceding an equaliser against nine men in stoppages.
“This team has conceded comebacks before, so when Cagliari got a goal back, you could see the tension set in. It made us go deeper and deeper, getting more and more frightened. In the final 20 minutes, we were too fragile on a psychological level.
“Let’s also not forget that Daniele De Rossi, our captain, has been out for 40 days and it becomes difficult to communicate that character to the others.
“We have a lot of problems finding players at the moment who can handle 90 minutes. Cagliari were pouring forward with their full-backs, I tried to make changes to protect those flanks, but the mentality of the team didn’t hold out.”