Analysis: How Veretout coped in right-back stand-in role

After defeating Braga 2-0 in the first leg, where injuries forced Paulo Fonseca into deploying a makeshift backline that saw Rick Karsdorp and Leonardo Spinazzola playing as centre backs and Jordan Veretout at right wing back, Roma faced a similar conundrum for the second leg.

Lining up with a back three that consisted of Gianluca Mancini, Bryan Cristante and Karsdorp, who were supported by Bruno Peres and Veretout at wingback, the Giallorossi coped brilliantly in this one too.

To shine the spotlight on the indispensable Veretout, and the Frenchman again proved what an integral component he is to this Roma side during the 3-1 triumph. Full of energy and intensity, he performed superbly in this unfamiliar role, with him showing what a tactically disciplined and adaptable player he is.

Shining on both sides of the ball, Veretout impressively transferred many of the traits that make him an exceptional midfielder into his wingback station, with his relentless running power, positional awareness, ferocity in the challenge and unyielding commitment all highlights.

Beginning with his offensive contribution, and the way Fonseca made some tweaks to his role when Roma were in possession was key, which ensured he was a lot more comfortable and could therefore impact proceedings in his customary powerful fashion.

Instructed to tuck infield most of the time, Veretout essentially played like a central midfielder when Roma were building out from the back, meaning he didn't have to make a huge adjustment to his game.

To allow this to happen, Karsdorp would push wide and Amadou Diawara would drop into central defence to form a back three or four (depending on Karsdorp's positioning) with Cristante and Mancini, with this suiting them ideally too.

Taking up some excellent areas, he offered great support to help Roma progress through the thirds and generate overloads in the middle.

With Braga faced with tough decisions on who to mark, even when Roma were 2v2 or 3v3 in midfield, his movement to receive behind Braga's midfield line or pin markers often gave Roma positional superiority to still bypass their foes.

Once Roma had beaten the press, it was interesting how Pedro would provide the width with Karsdorp covering behind.

This setup then allowed Veretout to either embark on one of his trademark lethal runs in behind or be situated to help support the ball holder and circulate possession.

In addition, as they moved up the pitch Diawara would often join Veretout in midfield, which allowed Gonzalo Villar to push on and make dangerous forward bursts and give Roma a vital extra number in the final third.

His dovetailing with Pedro and Karsdorp was intriguing too, for they would occasionally interchange positions and perform opposite movements. In such cases, this would form overloads, cause marking dilemmas and open up space out wide and in the half spaces, which Vererout capably exploited with his marauding upfield bursts or clever movement.

Credit must go to Fonseca for adapting his responsibilities in this phase to play to his strengths and give him the framework from which to thrive.

When it came to the defensive end, Veretout performed like a typical right wingback, with him dropping back and marking his winger, the dangerous Galeno. Getting back into position rapidly, he recovered his position well to form a compact shape with his colleagues.

Handling whatever his opponent threw at him, he coped admirably in 1v1 situations, tracked runs in behind smartly and pressed Galeno aggressively when he dropped deep with his back to goal, giving him no time or space to turn and face.

Possessing immense stamina and a relentless work ethic, the way the former Aston Villa man raced back to offer support to his colleagues if a runner had gotten through or ventured down the channel saw many promising passages shut down.

Fierce in his duels and remaining concentrated to anticipate and deal with his opponents, his stopping work was of a high level too.

While he won't regularly be expected to fill in at wingback, his approach was first rate, for he still led by example and set the tone wonderfully for his colleagues to follow.

Boasting a formidable attitude and always willing to sacrifice himself for the betterment of the team, the dependable Veretout's certainly a fine embodiment of Fonseca's philosophy.

His masterful performance against Braga at the Olimpico illustrated precisely that.