Di Francesco: Nothing is going right for us at the moment

Coach Eusebio Di Francesco was left to reflect on another frustrating evening on Sunday, as Roma fell to a late 1-0 defeat against Sampdoria at the Stadio Olimpico.

Read everything the boss had to say after the game.

Are Roma officially in crisis now? You can’t seem to score anymore.

“We had an awful start in the first 25 minutes and our goalkeeper had to be brilliant because we weren’t in the game at all. We kept on passing it short and never trying to play the ball in behind. As soon as I inverted our attacking wingers, the players were forced to play longer and we found the right solution that meant we were fluid, could put moves together and created chances. We started the second half very well and only conceded because of our mistake in their first chance of the half. I did not like our approach to the match in those opening 25 minutes, even though the team then reacted well and created plenty of good opportunities. I tried to put on a lot of offensive-minded players, which allowed us to work numerous chances, but we weren’t able to take them.”

The team could have put themselves right back in the running for the Champions League places tonight, but they seemed weak and distracted. What happened?

“Matches last 90 minutes. I did expect less intensity, but the opposition have just had three back-to-back matches as well, so this is not an excuse. I don’t know why we seemed nervous at the start or why we were passing the ball about in a way we hadn’t worked on in training. Our opponents did well to keep us in our half of the pitch. We’re struggling to score goals and this is affecting our performances.”

What’s up with Patrik Schick?

“He picked up an injury in training yesterday: a muscular problem similar to the one he had before. It’s a shame because he was making great progress and having to halt now is really unfortunate. He could have played in this game. Nothing is happening for us generally, not only the missed penalty. In a delicate moment like we’re in, this does not help. In these situations, you have to find the strength to react and stay in the game, but then Sampdoria punished us with their first chance in the second half.”

It seems you’ve lost some of your defensive solidity as well, conceding far too many shots today. What has happened there?

“They did have too many shots, it’s true. We’ve always been good in defence, but our full-backs were too open. If one full-back goes, the other has to offer cover. We started doing this after the first 25 minutes and looked better, but then they scored: we could have defended the cross for [Duvan] Zapata much better.”

How much do the transfer rumours influence a player like Edin Dzeko and his performances?

“If we were to reason this way, then based on the display in the first 25 minutes, everyone in the team must be on the verge of a move. The issue tonight was nothing to do with just Edin. It’s better not to speak about transfers because otherwise you risk being misinterpreted.”

Yet the transfer rumours refuse to go away.

“I can’t get away from our performance in the first 25 minutes and the fact we can’t put the ball in the net anymore. Everything else will be the topic of conversation when the transfer window closes.”

You spoke about some problems with your players during the winter break. Did some of them behave unprofessionally?

“I didn’t say that. I just said that you need to pay more attention to what you’re doing, including ourselves when preparing situations like these. For sure, this time off has been a disaster for us, because we’ve had three games in a week straight afterwards. In my opinion, we could have rested a few days more. There was an error on our behalf during this period and it stems primarily from me as the coach.”

How come Alessandro Florenzi was chosen as the penalty taker?

“Someone had to take it and the other candidates have missed them too. He was excellent at penalties in training and he stood up and said he’d take it in case there was a penalty. He was our captain this evening and he’s an experienced player. It’s a shame he missed, but no one has a perfect record from the penalty spot.”