AS Roma 2-0 Genoa: a second-half breakthrough and a tight back line
AI-written review based on match data · How we make it
Key numbers
- 34% possession: Genoa's lowest this season
- Shots on target 5-1 in Roma's favour
- xG 1.45 v 0.49, Roma had the better chances
Goalless at the break, settled after the restart
AS Roma beat Genoa 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico after a goalless first half. Castro's 50th-minute opener broke the deadlock, and Emanuele Lulli added a second in the 68th minute. Roma were in front for about 40 minutes of the match, and Genoa could not find a way back into it.
Genoa starved of the ball
Genoa's 34% possession was the lowest of their season, across their eight matches so far. They also managed only one shot on target. With Roma keeping hold of the ball for long spells, Genoa appear to have had few opportunities to build attacks of their own.
Roma outscored their chances
Roma's xG of 1.45 was below their season average of 2.2, yet two goals beat it by 0.55. Their shots carried a lower xG each than usual, which suggests many were modest-quality efforts rather than clear openings. Matías Soulé's key passes were the most in the match, and he was Roma's main creator.
The opener carried the weight
Santiago Castro's goal in the 50th minute was worth +0.9 FN xPts to Roma and, with Genoa's FN xPts falling by 0.6, it was the biggest moment of the match once both sides are counted. Lulli's strike in the 68th minute arrived with Roma already ahead, so it changed little.
FN MOM
Highest FN Score · our own pick by a published formula, not the official Player of the Match
Leonardo Balerdi 8.0Dominant
He won 11 of 14 duels and made five tackles and two interceptions.
Balerdi's work came mostly in his own half. His seven defensive actions, five tackles and two interceptions, were the most by any player in the match, and he completed 53 of 65 passes to help Roma build from the back. That kept Genoa to one shot on target while Roma waited for their goals in the 50th and 68th minutes.
Game state
1-02-0
AS Roma ahead 40 min · level 50 min · Genoa ahead 0 min
FN xPts — what each moment was worth
How much each moment changed that team's expected points (win 3, draw 1). A goal's value is credited 70% to the scorer and 30% to the assist. The value next to a team code is what the same moment did to the other side's expected points; the decisive moment is the one with the largest combined change for both teams.
50'
Santiago Castro
Goal · GEN −0.6
+0.9
68'
Emanuele Lulli
Goal · GEN −0.1
+0.2
AS Roma
Expected (last two seasons) 2.1Own moments +1.1Opponent moments 0.0Time effect −0.2→ League points won 3
Genoa
Expected (last two seasons) 0.6Own moments 0.0Opponent moments −0.7Time effect +0.1→ League points won 0
Expected points don't add up to a fixed total (a draw is 1 + 1), so an opponent's moment isn't simply the mirror of your loss. "Time effect" is the change as the clock runs down on a lead or a chase, and isn't credited to any player.
How FN Score and FN xPts work →
Match stats
AS RomaGenoa
1.45Expected goals (xG)0.49
Compared with usual
AS Roma
8 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 2 | 2.3 | |
| Conceded | 0 | 1 | |
| xG | 1.45 | 2.2 | |
| xG against | 0.49 | 1.3 | |
| Shots | 15 | 16.8 | |
| On target | 5 | 5.9 | |
| Shots faced | 9 | 11.5 | |
| xG per shot | 0.1 | 0.13 | |
| Possession | 66% | 54.3% | |
| Passes | 623 | 530 | |
| Corners | 5 | 4.9 | |
| Fouls | 10 | 13.5 | |
Genoa
8 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 0 | 1.3 | |
| Conceded | 2 | 1.5 | |
| xG | 0.49 | 0.98 | |
| xG against | 1.45 | 1.3 | |
| Shots | 9 | 15 | |
| On target | 1 | 4.4 | |
| Shots faced | 15 | 13.1 | |
| xG per shot | 0.05 | 0.08 | |
| Possession | 34% | 46% | low |
| Passes | 323 | 398.9 | |
| Corners | 3 | 5.8 | |
| Fouls | 7 | 10.1 | |
Timeline
- 43'
Yellow
Matías Soulé
- 50'
Goal
Santiago Castro league goal #1
- 51'
Yellow
Johan Vásquez
- 63'
Sub
Rodrigo Mora → Lorenzo Pellegrini
- 63'
Sub
Konstantinos Koulierakis → Hermoso
- 65'
Yellow
Leo Østigård
- 65'
Sub
Stephan El Shaarawy → Vítinha
- 68'
Goal
Emanuele Lulli league goal #1
- 76'
Yellow
Niccolò Pisilli
- 78'
Sub
Emanuele Lulli → Wesley
- 81'
Yellow
Mikael Ellertsson
- 83'
Sub
Morten Frendrup → Alexsandro Amorim
- 83'
Sub
Junior Messias → Nikita Solodchenko
- 88'
Sub
Devyne Rensch → Daniele Ghilardi
- 88'
Sub
Niccolò Pisilli → Alessandro Di Nunzio
Category leaders
- Key passesMatías Soulé3
- Duels wonLeonardo Balerdi11/14
- DribblesMatías Soulé3/5
- Defensive actionsLeonardo Balerdi7
- ShotsSantiago Castro4 (on target 1)
- Fouls wonLeo Østigård4
#Serie A#AS Roma#Genoa#Santiago Castro#Leonardo Balerdi
This review was written by AI from match data (API-Football). FN Score and FN xPts are calculated by Fulltime Note using a published formula.