Roma and Gonzalo Villar
Roma is incredibly fascinating due to how they approach certain phases of games and tactical approach. Within this piece, I will go through Roma’s nuances about how they move up the field and how they deal with opposition.
In the 19/20 Serie A season, Roma was inclined to using a 4–2–3–1 since this is Forseca’s bread and butter from his days in Donetsk, but a year later, Roma now utilises a 3–4–2–1 formation. Roma likes to mix and match when building up from the back — this season, Roma wants to pass out of the back using a back 3, but what they do from here changes from time to time. For instance, in specific matches, Roma has been prone to allowing one of the centre midfielders to drop into the defensive line, which allows the outside centre-backs to move across the pitch into fullback positions, which is the result of this, gives the wingbacks licence to move higher up the field and act as wingers. In certain games, Roma also likes to create a diamond with the back 3 and one of the central midfielders, which allows his midfield partner to move higher up the field.
Regardless of the system, the objective remains the same — transition the ball from point A to be point B quickly. The Roma center-backs continuously look for a progressive pass to usually Lorenzo Pellegrini or Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who drop into the half-spaces. If this pass is not, Roma defenders have no problem circulating the ball until an opening arrives or carrying the ball out themselves or passing to a player who can, which in most instances are the wingbacks or Jordan Veretout. The Frenchmen, Jordan Veretout is a precious piece to Roma’s build play jigsaw. As mentioned previously, Roma look to play vertically and look for a cutting edge pass, and Veretout’s nearly 5 progressive passes per 90, which is the highest at the club, undoubtedly contributes to the Roma game plan. Not just a progressive passer, Veretout also operates as a number 8/10 hybrid due to his final third passing contribution and late runs into the box. If the opposition manages to disrupt Roma’s build-up, Pellegrini or Mkhitaryan are allowed to drop deeper and support and if all else fails, Paul Lopez (goalkeeper) will launch a ball into Edin Dzeko who obtains great height which will aid him for flick-ons to other nearby attackers. This, while possessing excellent technical skill which allows him to bring the ball down from longs balls showcases how he is a wonderful passing outlet.
How Roma disrupts opposition build-up
Roma makes use of a 5–3–2 formation in a medium block but at times has deployed a 5–1–3–1 where the 10 in the midfield three-man marks the opposition 6 and tries to limit him as a passing option. Roma tries to force opposition wide, which triggers the pressing trap. Both of Roma’s outside centre-backs, which are in most cases Roger Ibanez and Gianluca Mancini, are very aggressive, so if the opposing team can beat the press in wide areas, the centre-back on the side of the ball has approval to step out of the defensive line and press to retain the ball.
Gonzalo Villar
While watching footage for this write-up, one player that caught my eye was Gonzalo Villar. What caught my interest was his combinations of specific skills and his contributions to Roma’s build-up play. While being deployed as a defensive 8 in a midfield two, the 22-year-old Spaniard is an immensely calm figure in the middle of the park on account of his fantastic technical ability, which also serves him well in tight situations. Villar also happens to be an impressive dribbler, amassing 2.02 dribbles per 90 at a 78% success rate. While being able to handle pressure from the opposition, Villar’s passing is another asset to Roma as he accumulates 6.18 passes into the final third while having 1.10 xGBuildup (98 percentile), which demonstrates how he is a feeder to the creative players of the team and how he is the beginner of moves from the base of midfield. Gonzalo Villar has many qualities, but young players suffer from shortcomings that may or may not grow out of, and Villar is no exception. The young midfielder has great defensive numbers (3.58 tackles and 1.8 interceptions), still upon observation, Villar was guilty of being sometimes being flat-footed and not showing the ball carrier into a direction during 1v1's. Due to Villar’s multifaceted skill set, it is very easy to envision him as a Pep Guardiola 6 in a midfield three. Still, he does not offer the combativeness or tenacity of Fernandinho and can also be quite hesitant at times when challenging for the ball. For Gonzalo Villar, time is on his side, so he has time to iron out problems within his game, but one thing is for sure, the talent is evident and clear to see.
Conclusion
Roma is not a perfect team, far from it, to be honest, Paulo Fonseca has implemented fascinating and fun ideas to the Giallorossi. Because of the system laid out, Roma play with aggressiveness, which can be a detriment, but in the same vein, it is satisfying to watch a team with a clear structure and having the bravery to push high. For Roma to truly challenge for top prizes, they must find a way to beat the top teams in Italy and improve this record, which stands at six games played so far, three draws, three losses, and 18 goals conceded; nevertheless, Roma is as fun as ever.
