The tactics of Rome to stop Salah: Never lose sight of him

The tactics of Rome to stop Salah: Never lose sight of him

ROME (AP) – Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah moves so fast that it's difficult to watch him.

However, that is exactly the advice that Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco gave his players before facing them his former teammate in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final.

Salah scored two goals in the first half of the opening leg, putting Liverpool on the way to a 5-2 victory.

Rome needs to win by a margin of three goals on Wednesday to advance to the final next month in Kiev, Ukraine, so Di Francesco emphasizes attacking while instructing his squad to be more aware of the rapid movements of Salah.

"We can not move a part of the squadron only for one player, even if it was decisive in the first leg, or try to focus the entire squad in Salah," Di Francesco said on Tuesday. "All I can say is that this player is incredibly skilled when he moves vertically and we have to be a bit better at reading certain situations."

"It's not like we can put three players in Salah. That is impossible, because we need to extend our energies, "added the first-year Roma coach. Yes, we have to account for the opponent, but we have to concentrate on ourselves and do something great to erase the triple goal. "Deficit."

Salah has scored 43 goals in 48 appearances in all competitions this season.

"If you lose focus for a second in games like this, you will be punished," said Roma midfielder Radja Nainggolan, who has never scored in 23 appearances in the Champions League. "We need to be fully concentrated for 95 minutes and give everything, that's the only way we can change this."

Roma have not conceded a goal in their five Champions League matches this season, and it is clear that the Giallorossi want to double their stunning 3-0 victory over Barcelona in the quarterfinals.

"I would do it like on a computer or phone: copy and paste," Di Francesco said. "We want to create another miracle, so to speak, but we all have to do much more than we did in the first leg."

Roma will not be able to count on physical midfielder Kevin Strootman, who injured his chest in the first stage.

There is concern about the violence of fans around the game after two Roma men were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after an assault outside the stadium before the first leg that left a Liverpool fan in a state critical.

I assure you that there are really great admirers in Rome, true fans, who have good intentions, "Di Francesco said when asked about the incident by a British journalist." But a small part of them, and I think also the You have to your favor, and in general all over the world, you can ruin a beautiful sport like ours.

"So, I want to present a call: I hope it's really joyful and fun to come to the stadium, beyond the result"

Rome trained on Tuesday wearing shirts that said, "Forza Sean" – "Sean Sean" – on them , referring to Liverpool fan Sean Cox, who remains in a medically induced coma.

The game is a rematch of the 1984 European Cup final that Liverpool won against Rome on penalties at the Olympic Stadium, and it is the first time that Roma have reached the semi-finals since the competition this year.

"It's been too long since the final for these players to realize what it means," said Di Francesco, who as a player helped Roma win the Serie A title. "That's more in hearts of the fans. [19659020] "The motivation for them should be elsewhere, playing a Champions League semi-final. I think we can achieve things in this competition. "

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Andrew Dampf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/asdampf