Roma squeeze through after draw with BATE
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Article summary
Roma 0-0 BATE Borisov
The excellence of Wojciech Szczęsny and Sergei Chernik ensured there were no goals as Roma pipped Leverkusen to second spot in Group E.
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Article body
- Both goalkeepers shine as Roma and BATE Borisov play out 0-0 draw
- Wojciech Szczęsny keeps Roma in competition with instinctive close-range stop
- Italian side emulate Zenit (2013/14) in qualifying with record low of six points
- Roma concede 16 goals, two more than any other team that ever progressed
- Round of 16 draw takes place at 12.00CET on Monday
Roma are through to the round of 16 for the first time since 2010/11 after a goalless draw against BATE Borisov – coupled with Bayer Leverkusen's failure to beat Barcelona – secured second place in UEFA Champions League Group E.
The Giallorossi could not find a way past Sergei Chernik and in the end owed their progress to their own keeper, Wojciech Szczęsny, for an instinctive close-range stop to somehow deny Mikhail Gordeichuk. BATE, who took four of their five points off Roma, finish fourth.
Rudi Garcia had likened the game to a derby given the stakes, so it was no surprise that Roma's early intensity was high. The pattern was soon set – the Wolves probing and BATE sitting back – yet for all of their first-half endeavours the Serie A side only elicited one save of note from Chernik, who dived to his right to repel Miralem Pjanić's free-kick.
That, though, was not enough to placate a frustrated home support, who made their displeasure known as the half-time whistle sounded. Within two minutes of the restart they were lamenting a second Chernik intervention as the BATE No1 frustrated Edin Džeko, fed by compatriot Pjanić, in a one-on-one.
Chernik soon came to the visitors' aid again, thwarting Alessandro Florenzi with his legs. His team in need of a spark, Garcia introduced the fit-again Mohamed Salah for his first appearance in a month.
Midway through the half Szczęsny scampered across his line to block from Gordeichuk. Sensing an opportunity to leapfrog their opponents, BATE asked another question of Szczęsny ten minutes later; again, the on-loan Arsenal man had the answer, beating Filip Mladenović's effort into the air.
