Roma rediscovers its form with 3-1 win over Lazio in derby

ROME (AP) - Roma's management has been pleading for patience from its disgruntled fans all season.

After selling off the backbone of the squad - goalkeeper Alisson to Liverpool, midfielder Radja Nainggolan to rival Inter Milan and beloved defensive midfielder Kevin Strootman to Marseille - the company line was that it would just take some of time before the team regains its stride as new players develop chemistry with those that remained.

Right on cue, Roma turned in its most convincing performance of the season on Saturday as the Giallorossi beat rival Lazio 3-1 in the all-important Rome derby.

"This performance means the team hasn't lost its identity or idea of football," Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco said. "I saw the difference in their faces and their eyes today, and it showed on the pitch."

Aleksandar Kolarov scored the winner with a free kick midway through the second half.

Roma substitute Lorenzo Pellegrini had opened the scoring with a clever backheel flick a minute before halftime but Ciro Immobile equalized for Lazio four minutes before Kolarov's goal following a Roma defensive lapse.

Federico Fazio, who was to blame for Immobile's goal, sealed it for Roma with a header following a free kick.

Roma's second victory in four days - including a 4-0 win over promoted Frosinone on Wednesday - gives the team some much-needed confidence ahead of a Champions League match against Viktoria Plzen on Tuesday.

A surprise semifinalist in the top European competition last season, Roma was thoroughly outclassed by three-time defending champion Real Madrid in a 3-0 loss in its group opener.

It's also been a difficult run for Roma in Serie A.

The Giallorossi needed a late goal from Edin Dzeko to win 1-0 at Torino in their opener. Then came a 3-3 draw with Atalanta at home and a 2-1 loss at AC Milan courtesy of a goal conceded five minutes into stoppage time.

Roma also wasted a two-goal advantage in a 2-2 draw with last-place Chievo Verona and then appeared to hit bottom with a 2-0 defeat at Bologna.

But now Roma is right back in the fight for the Champions League places, sitting fifth, one point behind Lazio, which had won four straight.

After the Bologna match, Di Francesco ordered the team to sleep at the club's training ground for several days.

"The decision to put the team together was to shake off fear. We reacted as men today, which was what I had asked for," Di Francesco said. "We might cling to the market, form or any other excuse, but the fact remains this is the same team I had last season and we hadn't been transformed so much."

While Lazio had the better start, Roma quickly responded with two dangerous chances involving Dzeko.

Pellegrini's goal involved a bit of good fortune.

The ball rolled away from Lazio goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha following a moment of chaos inside the Lazio box and, with the goalkeeper drawn out of position, Pellegrini quickly realized that with his back to the goal he could kick it in with his heel.

Pellegrini had come on 10 minutes earlier for Javier Pastore, who injured his left calf muscle.

Fazio's giveaway enabled the equalizer from Immobile, who scored with a diagonal shot into the far bottom corner.

Lazio's wall somehow fell apart to let through Kolarov's free kick, making him the second player in derby history to have scored for both Roma and Lazio. Kolarov played for Lazio from 2007-10 then returned to the Italian capital with Roma last year after seven seasons with Manchester City.

Kolarov scored Lazio's fourth goal in a 4-2 derby win in 2009.

Arne Selmonson, who played for Lazio and then Roma in the 1950s, is the only other player to have scored for both sides in the "Derby della Capitale."

Fazio's goal was set up with an accurate free kick from the 22-year-old Pellegrini, who had a standout performance.

"We created more chances in the first half and had more of the ball, but Roma deserved the victory because they were more determined," Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi said. "If you concede goals from set plays, you probably are going to lose."

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Andrew Dampf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/asdampf