Leicester and Roma provided a draw in the first leg of their Conference League semi-final. Playing on pragmatism, José Mourinho’s team took the lead in the first half of the game, but in the second half the ‘foxes’ went one step further to return the tie to the match and in the tie.
Leicester
11
rOMA
Leicester: Schmeichel; Pereira, Fofana, Evans, Castagne (Justin, m.21); Maddison, Tielemenas, Dewsbury-Hall; Albrighton (Barnes, m.62), Vardy (Iheanacho, m.62) y Lookman (Ayoze Pérez, m.84)
Roma: Rui Patricio; Ibáñez, Smalling, Mancini; Karsdorp, Mkhitaryan (Veretout, m.57), Cristante, Zalewski (Viña, m.85); Zaniolo (Oliveira, m.70), Pellegrini (Afena-Gyan, m.85) y Abraham
Goals: 0-1, m.15: Pellegrini. 1-1, m.67: Mancini (pp)
Referee: From the Cerro Grande (ESP). Showed yellow card to Dewsbury-Hall, Vardy for Leicester; and Abraham, Zaniolo for Roma
Incidences: Conference League semi-final first leg match at the King Power Stadium in Leicester
see game file
Leicester started and finished better, but Roma always knew how to contain their rival and defend Pellegrini’s opening goal. When the English pressed the hardest was when the ‘giallorossi’ team struck their blow. Zalewski broke lines and gave in to Pellegrini, who made it 0-1 by slipping it under the legs of Kasper Schmeichel (15′).
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The goal changed the dynamic of the game by leaving Leicester touched. It cost Brendan Rodgers’s men a world to generate danger against a sober Rome without being in trouble.
The passage through the changing rooms reactivated the ‘foxes’, who began to hang balls in the area without finding a finisher. Mourinho’s team remained serene until in a flash Leicester managed to equalize through Lookman, although the goal was then awarded to Mancini’s own goal.
In the final stretch of the match, both teams had an excellent opportunity to deal another blow to their rival, but first Rui Patricio took a saving hand from Iheanacho’s shot and then Schmeichel avoided the Roman goal to Sergio Oliveira’s cannon shot. Thus, everything is pending for the return to the Olympic.