Five things we learned: Salah and forwards strike all the right notes

Roma secured a spirited 3-0 win over Bologna on Sunday evening, as a Mohamed Salah hat-trick put the visitors to the Stadio Olimpico to the sword.

Our columnist looks at five key points from the contest...

Spalletti proud of collective effort

With Roma currently missing many first-team regulars through injury, it was inspiring to see an under-manned Roma yet again show their immense collective spirit - which has been so expertly cultivated by Luciano Spalletti - and band together to gain a crucial 3-0 victory over Bologna.

This has certainly been a hallmark of Spalletti's reign and he was justifiably proud of his team's efforts.

"The club has put together a competitive squad. We’ve had lots of injuries but at the same time the players that have been involved less have stepped up to the plate," he explained.

"You need to be able to adapt in these situations and we’ve done that. We’ve adapted to what is a bit of an emergency situation. When you play with lots of players out of position something usually goes wrong, but here at Roma we have lots of top professionals who have shown real self-sacrifice.”

Salah the hero

What a performance it was from Mohamed Salah. From the outset, the dynamic Egyptian posed a relentless threat to the Rossoblu backline, with his blend of blistering pace, crafty trickery and lethal finishing proving too much for the away side to handle.

It was indeed a night Salah will never forget, for his hat-trick was the first one he's ever bagged in his professional career.

Now sitting on eight league goals after his man of the match showing, Salah sits just two behind Edin Dzeko in the Capocannoniere standings.

"I'm delighted about the hat-trick," an overjoyed Salah said after the match. "We have to carry on exactly as we are. We want to win every game.

"The international break is about to begin and afterwards we have to continue in this manner. We all want to win something for Roma."

Perotti's creativity central to Roma's threat

The creativity and intelligence of Diego Perotti rose to the fore emphatically in Roma's dominant win. Dovetailing nicely with Salah and Dzeko, the Argentine was a constant thorn in Bologna's side, who just couldn't come to terms the multi-faceted attacker.

The fact he created a staggering 10 chances, completed six take-ons and was the most fouled played on the field suitably illustrated his menace.

His precise assist for Salah's opener fittingly arrived after he comprehensively outfoxed Alex Ferrari with a tidy piece of skill down the left.

Szczesny getting it done

Wojciech Szczesny continues to go about his work in an effective, efficient manner, putting in another encouraging performance between the posts. On his way to making an impressive five saves, the Polish international controlled his area authoritatively, made well-calculated decisions and positioned himself nicely, in a match where he exuded plenty of calmness and composure.

He's undoubtedly consolidated his position as an integral component of this Roma side, who have conceded 12 goals in their 12 Serie A games, which serves a fine reward for all his hard work and perseverance since re-joining the club in the summer.

Fazio encourages with his display

After a challenging start to life in Rome, Federico Fazio is another player who is now coming along nicely. Although Fazio went into the match under an injury cloud, despite the odd hairy moment, the 29-year-old looked solid and comfortable for the majority of the contest. Alongside Antonio Rudiger, the pair formed a strong partnership that Bologna ultimately couldn't break down.

By the numbers, the Argentine's 15 defensive actions were crucial, while in Roma's possession phases, he used the ball in a sensible, coherent fashion as he completed a game high 93.3% of his passes.

"It was important to keep a clean sheet, defence is obviously important. We have to continue like this, it is the right way to improve every match," he noted.

Fazio then went onto speak about how influential the strong belief and desire Spalletti's instilled into the team is, stating: "We feel this way, we walk on to the pitch with a lot of confidence and an emphasis on defence as we know that we are doing well in attack. We must get used to winning every match and think that each victory is normal and expected."