Roma seize the moment

Pressure, what pressure? If Inter president Massimo Moratti had hoped to make Roma edgy by saying that he expected them to be his side's main antagonist for the championship this season, his mind games backfired and left absolutely no effect. Last weekend, Catania were literally destroyed by the sheer quality and team play of a resurgent team from the capital.

Roma's performance was full of attacking football. Luciano Spalletti's men did not show mercy with beleaguered Catania as they recorded a 7-0 victory, a scoreline that had been missing in the Serie A history books since 1983/84.

The five scorers for Roma on Sunday were all at the club last year, meaning that Spalletti's policy to build on an already-settled base continued to pay rich dividends.

That of Sunday was Roma's fourth straight win, which has left them four points behind leaders Inter with seven games to go for the end of the first round.

Roma's position in the standings is no mean feat for a club that up to a few years ago was on the brink of financial collapse. Sunday's victory becomes even more significant when one considers that Serie A newcomers Catania were coming from a five-match positive run (three wins and two draws).

Roma have been outstanding on various occasions this season. It looks as if the side have stepped up several gears since the end of October. Before that, Roma experienced a bumpy period during which they could only collect two draws against modest opposition in the likes of Reggina, Chievo and Ascoli.

But, ever since beating Udinese at the Friuli Stadium on October 28, Roma never looked back and have been going from strength to strength, game after game.

More points

In contrast with the same period of 2005/06, Roma have improved their tally of points by eight. The demolition show of Sunday enabled Roma to equal Palermo as the most prolific sides in Serie A this season.

The only two marked differences with respect to the Sicilians is that third-placed Roma have a point less but they have conceded only half of Palermo's 16 goals against.

Roma will take on Palermo at home on December 17, a week after clashing with rivals Lazio.

Surely, the race for the title this season is not in danger of going to sleep thanks also to the contributions of Palermo and Roma.

Inter are the team to beat, no doubt. They have an awesome squad. But, Palermo and Roma are proving to be genuine contenders for the title even though they do not possess the same financial muscle of the Milanese giants.

Palermo are a solid team and have a shrewd coach in Francesco Guidolin. But to watch the most entertaining and dazzling football in the Serie A this season, then one has to see Roma in action.

As happened in the second round last season, they are playing attack-minded football even though Spalletti deploys a lone striker in his line-ups.

On Sunday, Roma started with captain Francesco Totti up front with Brazilian aces Mancini and Rodrigo Taddei as supporting strikers. The final outcome was simply incredible.

Roma started playing with two strikers after Vincenzo Montella came on in the 52nd minute, at a time when they were already leading 5-0. This attacking system is working wonders for Spalletti even though one has to see what happens if Roma are desperate for goals when falling behind.

Roma have lost to Inter at home on the third day this season. That defeat would have been enough to break the spirit in many a team. But Roma, to their credit, came out from that upset somewhat stronger and more determined to succeed.

Only time will tell if Roma's cohesion and determined play will be enough to deny Inter from the title as the race continues next Sunday with the plum fixture Palermo-Inter at the Renzo Barbera stadium.

Serie A statistics...

1st victory for Torino after five winless games (three draws and two defeats). Last weekend, Alberto Zaccheroni's side left it late to hand Sampdoria their fourth straight away defeat. Although Torino had more of possession, they seldom threatened the Sampdoria goalkeeper. When all was set for the teams' first drawn result in Turin since September 24, 1995 (1-1), Alessandro Rosina scored from Torino's first penalty of the term to give his side three points. Sampdoria's latest away win dates back to January 14 (vs Lecce 3-0). The last time they left Turin with a win was on October 24, 1993 (3-2).

2nd successive win for Lazio as Delio Rossi's side continued where they had left off against Udinese the previous week and went on to beat Messina for the first time since October 27, 1963 (2-0). Bruno Giordano's Messina only managed two draws in their last three matches. Livorno, still to suffer a goal at home this season, continued to show signs of progress as they crushed Parma 3-0 to go fourth. It was Livorno's third win in as many home meetings with Parma.

3 penalties were taken last weekend. Messina's Christian Riganò consolidated his leadership in the scorers' list by hitting home his second penalty of the season. Riganò's penalty, however, was not enough for Messina to avoid defeat against Lazio. However, the same cannot be said of the penalties scored by Vincenzo Iaquinta (Udinese) and Alessandro Rosina (Torino). Both were decisive from the spot to halt a bleak run of results for their respective sides.

4 players, namely, Igor Budan (Parma), Fabio Simplicio (Palermo), Giuseppe Mascara and David Baiocco (both Catania), received their marching orders. Roma, together with Palermo, possess the most prolific attack with 26 goals each. Roma, with eight goals against, also have the best defensive record in the league.

4th straight league win for Luciano Spalletti's Roma as the Giallorossi annihilated Catania 7-0. This was a one-way traffic show as nine-man Catania were already four goals at half-time. The sour defeat also brought to an end Catania's positive streak (three wins and two draws). Sunday's setback confirmed Catania's poor record in the capital, where they have never won and their most recent of two draws dates back to 1965 (1-1). Roma's win, coupled with Palermo's unexpected setback in Sardinia, enabled them to close in on the Sicilians. Now, only one point separates Roma from runners-up Palermo who confirmed their winless record in six Serie A visits to the Sant'Elia stadium. Cagliari are undefeated in their last 10 outings.

5th win on the trot for undisputed leaders Inter. But, on Sunday, the Nerazzurri had to sweat for a hard-fought home win against bottom-of-the-class Reggina. The visitors, buoyed by their away win over Siena the previous weekend, played perhaps their best game so far this season as they hustled and bustled with a view to cancel Argentine Hernan Crespo's fourth-minute opener. But it was all in vain as Inter - the only top division side still undefeated - resisted until the final whistle. It was Inter's fourth win in their last five home meetings with the southerners, who, on their part, have never emerged from the Meazza Stadium with a win against Inter - three draws and four defeats. Atalanta came from the death to salvage a hard-earned 2-2 draw against Chievo. Had the Verona outfit held on to their lead, then it would have been their fourth win from as many home clashes with Atalanta.

6th positive result on the trot (one win and five draws) for modest Empoli, who on Saturday held Milan to a goalless draw. Although Milan dominated for long stretches, for some reason or another they failed to break down Empoli's tight defence. In the end, Carlo Ancelotti's side had to settle for their first draw after consecutive defeats at the hands of Inter, Atalanta and Roma. Sunday's stalemate was the first between these two sides in almost four years. It is worth mentioning that Empoli have never beaten Milan in eight home Serie A meetings - four draws and four defeats. Veteran coach Nedo Sonetti had a positive debut on the Ascoli hot bench as his side came from a goal down to snap up a precious home draw with Fiorentina. Over 16 years have now passed since Ascoli's most recent of eight wins in 16 home clashes against the Viola.

27 goals were scored on the 12th day: 20 coming from the hosts and the remaining seven from the visitors, who managed only one victory. Foreigners contributed with seven goals while there were 11 first-half goals. Total number of goals scored so far amount to 300. Parma defender Damiano Ferronetti committed the only own goal of the day. Four players - Vincenzo Iaquinta (Udinese), Christian Panucci, Simone Perrotta (both Roma) and Stefano Mauri (Lazio) - grabbed a brace each to help their respective sides cruise to emphatic wins over Siena, Catania and Messina respectively. Cristiano Lucarelli (Livorno), Vincenzo Montella (Roma), Riccardo Zampagna (Atalanta) and Simone Pepe (Cagliari) came on as substitutes and found the net. Christian Riganò, of Messina, still tops the scorers' list with nine goals.