🔗 Share this article

There was impressive effectiveness about the way Roma handled this trip to Scotland. Minimum of fuss. Roma from Italy’s capital did, however, meet favourable opposition when placing their Europa League bid on the right path. There was a glaring difference in class between Roma and a the Scottish team side that has now lost a team record seven European games in a row.

Positively, the home side at least huffed and puffed during a second half when surrender felt the probable option. However, the match was decided as a contest by then. The Scottish club remain rooted to the foot of the Europa League, which should constitute an embarrassment to a team of this standing. The Giallorossi have ambitions once more on achieving significant success. Their only regret here was in not producing a scoreline that truly reflected men against boys.

Amazingly, this marked only Roma’s second continental encounter with a team from Scotland since Fairs Cup business with Hibs in the early 60s. The previous one, against the Terrors over two decades later, became overshadowed (to put it politely) by the bribing of a match official. Back then, teams from Scotland could compete with the top sides in Europe. This season has seen the UEFA coefficient plunge to a point that will soon have major consequences.

The new manager’s main quality so far as the Rangers support are see it is that he isn’t his predecessor. The latter’s dismal spell as the head coach continued for 123 days in the early part of this season. Röhl, the new man at the helm, has displayed potential though within a tiny sample size. The technical areas saw a clash of generations; the Rangers boss is 36, his opposite number Gian Piero Gasperini is sixty-seven.

A further factor was far more striking as the sides took the field. The home team’s obvious short stature against the visitors looked ominous. This point was confirmed within 13 minutes as the Roma midfielder easily redirected a corner at the near post. At the back, the Argentine winger sprinted into space to knock Roma in front. A Roma team minus the unavailable Evan Ferguson and Paulo Dybala, who have been questioned for lack of cutting edge despite reasonable results in this campaign, were pleased with their early advantage.

The Ibrox side should have equalised immediately. Rather, Youssef Chermiti screwed his shot wide after a defensive error in the visitors’ backline. The player’s £8m purchase from the Toffees has piled pressure on the club’s recruitment team. He has at least the physique to be an effective striker but seems reluctant or incapable to use them.

The Italian outfit dominated first-half the ball thereafter. Roma doubled their lead through Lorenzo Pellegrini, whose bent effort into the far post of the goalkeeper’s net arrived after a lay off from Artem Dovbyk. Rangers will lament the fact the midfielder was left in blissful isolation but it was a gorgeous strike. The stadium, usually a raucous venue on European nights, had been silenced nine minutes before the break. The discontent which greeted the half-time whistle were subdued; the home team were clearly in the midst of being overwhelmed.

The second period began against a unusual backdrop. Those Rangers fans turned their attentions once again towards the top executive, Patrick Stewart, and transfer chief, the director. Two banners, clearly sinister in tone, showed the duo with bullseyes on their faces. One wonders what the Rangers chairman makes of all this. Ultimately, the chairman had an anonymous career as a wealthy entrepreneur in the United States before leading a takeover of Rangers. Fans have not turned on the owner so far but there is a mutinous feeling around the club. It is one which is easy to understand; Rangers’ management is completely unimpressive.

As if scripted, the striker was sent through on the keeper on the 60-minute mark and hit the side netting. That moment sparked Rangers’ finest spell of the game, in which their substitute Thelo Aasgaard fired just wide. It was, nonetheless, difficult to gauge Roma’s remaining attacking motivation until Zeki Celik was given a opportunity all of a yard out which he inexplicably hit up and onto the underside of the crossbar.

That opportunity as far as meaningful chances were concerned. The series of substitutions from each side resulted in this fixture closed more in the style of a summer exhibition than competitive match. That scenario benefited Roma perfectly. There was cause to consider how exactly the Glasgow club, runners-up in this competition in 2022 and strong enough of the quarter-finals a last year, arrived at the point of just participating.