Villarreal 0-4 Roma: Match report, reaction and key statistics

Edin Dzeko fired a hat-trick as Roma beat Villarreal 4-0 in Spain to give themselves a significant advantage in their last-32 Europa League tie.

A stunned Estadio de la Ceramica was half-empty by the time Dzeko completed his second-half hat-trick, the striker turning and firing past Sergio Asenjo with five minutes remaining to give the Giallorossi a huge lead going into next week's second leg.

Emerson Palmieri opened the scoring for the visitors - lashing into the top corner shortly before half-time in spectacular fashion - before Dzeko took control of matters in the second half, thanks to assists from substitutes Mohamed Salah and Juan Jesus.

His final strike, provided by Nainggolan, was the icing on the cake - which will have left Spalletti delighted with the home leg now to come.

The final match statistics spoke of an even contests - the hosts had as many shots as their vanquishers - but, in truth, this was an impressive away display from the Giallorossi, who created the far better openings and then made them count.

An even game had slowly begun to turn in favour of Spalletti's side even before they opened the scoring, as the side grabbed possession and begun to probe in and around the Villarreal box. But the opener, when it came, was a moment of individual brilliance.

There appeared to be little on when Emerson robbed Samu Castillejo down the left, the Brazilian surging forward and looking for Dzeko as the defence backtracked. With the striker marked he opted to go it alone - stunning the crowd as he drove a right-footed effort into the top corner from 25 yards.

That emboldened Roma, who returned in the second half with renewed confidence - especially after weathering a brief Villarreal storm. The introduction of Mohamed Salah had an instant impact, stretching an already weary Villarreal defence, as he crossed for Dzeko to turn home clinically.

That opener was a thing of beauty, and the Bosnian would coolly take two further opportunities in the final 15 minutes of the contest to walk away with the match ball.

A night to remember for one - and one to remember for all Giallorossi fans too.

Team selection

Coach Luciano Spalletti revealed at his pre-match press conference on Wednesday that Alisson would start in goal - as he had done for the entirety of the group stage - removing any doubt about one of the few obvious selection decisions he might have had ahead of the game.

Elsewhere Daniele De Rossi was restored to central midfield alongside Kevin Strootman, while Stephan El Shaarawy joined the attack after sitting out the weekend win over Crotone. Leandro Paredes and Mohamed Salah moved to the bench as a result.

Key moments

FIRST HALF

24’ – Castillejo wriggles free and hits a powerful drive just over the crossbar.

27’ – Strootman hits the side-netting with an ambitious effort from a very tight angle.

30’ – Dzeko meets El Shaarawy’s cross, but his header is held by Asenjo.

32’ – GOAL! ROMA LEAD! Emerson robs Castillejo down the left, cuts inside onto his ‘weaker’ right foot … and unleashes a drive that finds the top corner! 1-0 to Roma!

42’ – Radja tries to emulate his teammate from a similar distance, but he can’t keep the strike down.

45’ – Emerson tests Asenjo with a powerful drive from a tight angle, but the ‘keeper parries it away.

See more images in our match gallery.

SECOND HALF

52’ – Bakambu goes it alone, turns inside and then outside the covering defender … but then floats his shot fractionally wide of Alisson’s far post!

55’ – SAVE! Trigueros finds Mario Gaspar at the near post with a good cross, but Alisson keeps out his glancing header!

60’ – Trigueros goes for goal but Alisson saves comfortably. A good spell for the hosts.

65’ – GOAL! ROMA MAKE IT TWO! Peres finds Salah – fresh on as a substitute – in behind, who squares to Dzeko on the penalty spot. He fools his defender to create space, and slots him coolly! 2-0!

79’ – GOAL! IT’s THREE! Jesus breaks the defence open with a chipped ball for Dzeko … and the striker half-volleys past Asenjo for his second! 3-0 Roma!

90' - Nearly five! Strootman finds Salah inside the box, but his shot is slightly

Key match statistics

Social media reaction

Roma reaction

“We were fantastic today. We gave nothing away at the back and put four goals past a solid Spanish outfit like Villarreal. We were excellent.“Every match is a story unto itself. Sometimes we struggle away from home against the smaller teams in Serie A but we showed just how good we are today.”

- Edin Dzeko

“Regardless of what the scoreline might suggest it was an evenly balanced match and Villarreal played some good football. We knew it would be tough but we wanted to come here and put ourselves in a strong position for the return leg, although I don't think we expected to do it in quite such a convincing manner. They have an excellent defensive record so winning 4-0 here makes our performance tonight all the more impressive.”

- Daniele De Rossi

What's next?

The second leg of this tie takes place next Thursday, with the Stadio Olimpico playing host to a 19:00 CET kick-off.

Around that fixture the Giallorossi have a tough Serie A schedule - they host Torino in Rome on Sunday, before travelling to Milan to face Internazionale the following weekend.

VILLARREAL 0-4 ROMA

Goalscorers: Emerson (32'), Dzeko (65', 79', 86')

Villarreal: Asenjo; Mario, Musacchio, Ruiz, Costa; Castillejo, Trigueros, Bruno, Dos Santos; Sansone, Bakambu.

Roma: Alisson; Manolas, Fazio, Rudiger (Jesus); Peres, De Rossi, Strootman, Emerson; Nainggolan (Paredes), El Shaarawy (Salah); Dzeko.