Four Things We Learned: Nainggolan orchestrates pre-Shakhtar boost

Ideal precursor to Shakhtar clash

Roma's solid 3-0 win over Torino at the Stadio Olimpico was not only a resounding way to avenge the Coppa Italia loss to Il Toro but also acted as a perfect precursor to their enormous Champions League fixture against Shakhtar Donetsk next week.

There was indeed plenty to admire for Eusebio Di Francesco about the collectively pleasing performance, particularly in the second half where he decisively changed shape, as he left feeling content in a match where Roma strengthened their grip on third place ahead of Lazio - for the time being at least.

"Today's win shows that we've cleared the hurdle now. We had lots of corners and free kicks today but I don't think we're fully exploiting our ability – either because we're not accurate or we're not incisive," he insisted.

“We're going to need 12 men on Tuesday. I believe the crowd will have a crucial role to play against Shakhtar.”

Nainggolan's blends energy and intelligence

Registering two slick assists was a fine reward for Radja Nainggolan's excellent body of work. But this wasn't his only contribution, however, for the Belgian illustrated his enviable capacity to persistently exploit vacant space. Whether in transition or in the Giallorossi's more controlled build-up play, the energetic yet intelligent midfielder was a constant thorn in Torino's side.

One especially apt example came in the first half where he dropped deep, knowing full well that his marker, Afriyie Acquah, would follow him vigorously. Aware of the pressure, Nainnggolan quickly released the ball to Daniele De Rossi, before immediately running back into Roma's half of the pitch.

The sheer speed of his movement completely caught Acquah of guard, allowing Nainggolan to take advantage of the massive space in between the lines that he so expertly manufactured for himself.

Alessandro Florenzi's crafty runs

Alessandro Florenzi's slick runs in behind offered another interesting avenue to unbalance the away side. As seen in the image below, Florenzi's surging run and high positioning successfully sees Roma generate a 5-on-4 scenario for the Torino backline to handle, therefore putting them at a numerical deficit.

Also noteworthy is how his movement, which was instigated on the blindside of his tracker, Alex Berenguer, ensured his run was left completely unmarked, plus how Kevin Strootman has shifted over and is providing structural stability to balance Florenzi's upfield motoring.

Conditions effectively made for Schick's runs

Although not everything went to plan for Patrik Schick against Mazzarri's men, he still displayed plenty of glimpses of his quality. His spatial awareness, and the movements that followed from that, was a real positive.

Schick would drop cleverly in between the opposition's lines of midfield and defence, use the half spaces well and embark on purposeful runs in behind.

The image underneath shows this game intelligence. Seeing as Cengiz Under and Stephan El Shaarawy have occupied Nicolas Nkoulou and Lorenzo De Silvestri's attention, Schick shrewdly uses the spaces left behind the Granata defenders' pushing up to direct his run into the free area. He could then subsequently make the most of his striking athleticism and skill over the much older, less mobile Emiliano Moretti.