Di Francesco: This will be a lesson for us

The Giallorossi continued their recent winning streak thanks to goals from Aleksandar Kolarov and Federico Fazio, although Nicola Sansone's strike 12 minutes from time set up a nervy finish to a game that had perhaps never fully been in Roma's control.

Read what the boss had to say after the contest...

Was Robin Olsen the man of the match tonight? Did you give Bologna too many chances in the first half?

“We weren’t in the game in the first half and that was partly down to Bologna. Credit to them for their performance, but we committed too many mistakes. We didn’t move well enough for each other and played badly from all perspectives. We would have deserved to go in behind. Often people say that these are the kind of three points that the great sides pick up – sometimes you have to win this way, though I don’t like it.

"That said, in the second half we improved across the board. I changed a few things on a tactical level and I got the reaction I wanted. We didn’t turn up in the first 45 minutes and lost all the duels – that makes all the difference in football.”

Would Roma have lost this game not so long ago?

“Yes. We didn’t show clear heads tonight – we shot from distance when we could have got into the box via different avenues. We misplaced passes and let them put us under pressure. This match will be a lesson for us. We worked very hard against Porto and played well on a tactical level. We weren’t so good in that respect tonight, but it was important that we got the three points.”

Was the first-half performance a direct result of the demands of the Porto performance?

“We lost the physical duels all over the pitch in the first half. I was expecting [Nicolo] Zaniolo to cause [Mitchell] Dijks more problems. I changed tack after the break because we got stretched and Edin [Dzeko] was isolated. We did better in the second half in terms of getting at them and being more well-organised tactically.

"We continued to give the ball away a bit too much after the break. It’s true that we produced a very good performance on Tuesday. Perhaps I didn’t change the line-up enough – sometimes it’s having that clarity of thought that makes all the difference.”

Did you improve at the back after Daniele De Rossi came on? Can he not play two games back to back?

“We need to take it day by day with him. We’re gradually bringing him back into the fold. I knew I was going to need him off the bench. When he came on we were already doing better – Zaniolo had pushed up and we had another forward on to press them. Regardless of De Rossi, it was the mentality and tactical approach in the second half that proved to be the difference.”

You’ve pulled away from Lazio and Atalanta, but do you think they are in the hunt for a Champions League place alongside yourselves, Inter and AC Milan?

“Those are the teams that will fight to qualify for the Champions League. AC Milan secured a great result the other day – they played very well. We couldn’t afford to fall behind today. We’re happy with the three points, less so with the performance.”