Roma's Nail-Biting Europa League Win: A Wild Ride
Okay, so you know the Europa League Round of 16? It was seriously dramatic. AS Roma faced off against Athletic Bilbao, and let me tell you, it was a rollercoaster. Roma squeaked out a 2-1 win in the first leg – a victory that felt way closer than the scoreline suggests. Meanwhile, Real Sociedad and Manchester United played out a pretty boring 1-1 draw, but honestly, nobody was talking about *that* after the Rome match. The tension in that stadium? Electric. You could practically cut it with a knife.
A Back-and-Forth Battle
Bilbao came out swinging. They took the lead around the 50th minute – a cracking header from Iñaki Williams. I swear, I nearly jumped out of my skin! But Roma? They're made of tougher stuff. Just six minutes later, Angeliño popped up with an equalizer. Can you believe it? The game was back on, and it was anyone's for the taking. The next twenty minutes felt like an eternity; it was a real nail-biter.
Red Card & Late Drama - Classic Europa League!
And then, things got *really* interesting. Around the 86th minute, Yeray Álvarez from Bilbao saw red – a second yellow card, sending him off. Ten men against eleven. You know how sometimes things just spiral? That's exactly what happened. And wouldn't you know it, in stoppage time, Eldor Shomurodov popped up with the winner for Roma. Honestly, who saw that coming? A 2-1 victory for Roma, leaving Bilbao with a seriously uphill battle in the second leg. What a finish!
What the Players & Coach Had to Say
Roma's Tommaso Baldanzi said the game was unbelievably tough, but that Roma showed real grit. Manager Claudio Ranieri echoed those sentiments, praising his team's fighting spirit and ability to overcome adversity. He also gave a shout-out to the amazing support from the home crowd – the atmosphere was definitely a factor. Ranieri acknowledged Bilbao played well, too. It was a fair fight, even if it ended a little… dramatically.
The Road Ahead: Bilbao's Mountain to Climb
So, there you have it: a 2-1 lead for Roma going into the second leg in Bilbao. Bilbao has a massive task ahead of them, not just to score, but to score enough to overcome that deficit. And they’re doing it with one fewer player! The second leg is going to be wild, I can already feel it. It's going to be a proper clash – two teams battling tooth and nail for a spot in the Europa League quarterfinals.
