Di Francesco: We paid the price for our lack of conviction

Rodrigo De Paul scored the only goal of the game 10 minutes into the second half, as the Giallorossi suffered another painful loss away from the Stadio Olimpico.

Do you think desire and determination were lacking today besides the performance?

“I don't think you can say a team that has 80% possession in the first half and 26 shots throughout the game failed to perform. What we were lacking was the grit and determination needed to win the match. Perhaps it's a character issue. We can't be in control of the game for 60 minutes and then concede from a throw-in 40 yards from goal.

"We made mistakes I'd never seen before. We didn't make the most of the chances we created when we were on top. We failed to take them and now here we are licking our wounds again. We lacked grit and determination but we did produce some good football. We came up short once we got into the box and failed to turn chances into goals.”

So it's a finishing problem?

“Unfortunately, these matches are decided by small details which are part and parcel of the game. We need to believe more in what we do – it's not a question of bad luck. People always look at the result of course but if you look at the match I can't say we didn't show up. However, there are certain areas where we're not good enough yet.

"There's no point looking for excuses like possible penalties. There were times during the game where we gave our opponents confidence. We should have scored in the 55 minutes before they scored. I'm annoyed because I wanted three points and what happened today shows you that dominating games doesn't always mean you come away with a good result.”

Given the chances you had, would you say it's the details in your finishing that make the difference between a great team and a team that still needs to improve?

“Yes, I completely agree with that. We haven't reached the level we need to be at yet. I saw lots of positives in terms of our movement today but it's the details that make the difference. We made four mistakes one after another when they scored. My defenders should have been more determined. And the same goes for my forwards when attacking.

"My team showed they have an identity but if you play well and don't get anything from the game it makes everything more difficult.”