Spalletti acknowledges poor performance but bemoans bad luck

Spalletti bemoaned deflections to each of Lazio's opening two goals - luck he was quick to point out the Giallorossi did not get - as his side succumbed to a disappointing loss at the Stadio Olimpico.

"Today we have to swallow the analysis that will be made about us: we lost focus and we probably made some wrong decisions at points," Spalletti said. "We had two more clear goalscoring chances compared to them, but instead of nicking deflections we could only find saves from their keeper. This is what made the difference.

"Obviously, after their goal, our confidence dropped and we lost grip on our game plan. Nevertheless, the match hinged on the blow against the run of play."

Spalletti called for a quick response from the side - as they have shown on other occasions this seasons - ahead of similarly important games against AC Milan and Juventus.

"Now Roma have to rediscover our quality and show mental solidity," he said. "We need our heads screwed on when making decisions and not be overcome by confusion. We’ve lost games before, but we managed to regroup, start again and show our ability, which is clear to see from our position in the league table.

"Various incidents came together to produce this poor Roma performance. We started well and were implementing the game plan we had in mind, but on their first two attacks they scored two goals.

"We had a couple of chances to take the lead, but after we conceded against the run of play, we started thinking it wasn’t going to be our day and luck wasn’t on our side. We made a few more slip-ups and the match became an open contest: we couldn’t play like the team we know."