AS Roma striker Romelu Lukaku scored the winning goal to give his team the victory.

Roma defeated FC Sheriff 2-1 in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League Group G match of the 2023/24 season at Sheriff Stadium in Moldova on Sunday (June 22). Roma, last season’s Europa League runners-up, began their Europa League campaign on a high note.

Roma coach José Mourinho did not make the bench on this day. He was handed a four-match ban for criticizing referee Anthony Taylor’s call in last season’s Europa League final. Mourinho watched the game from the stands.

The game remained tightly balanced until the final minutes of the first half. Roma narrowly took the lead in the 49th minute through Leandro Paredes. Roma took the lead, but Sheffield Wednesday’s Christian Tovar equalized 12 minutes into the second half to make it 1-1. Despite Roma’s advantage in terms of objective power, the game remained hard-fought. 메이저놀이터

It was Lukaku who saved the day for Roma. He scored a dramatic goal in the 20th minute to give Roma a 2-1 lead. Despite being outnumbered and having midfielder Joao Paulo sent off in stoppage time, Roma held on for a 2-1 victory.

They kept the scoreboard ticking. According to soccer stats site Sofascore, Lukaku had two shots on goal, one on target, an 88% passing success rate, one successful dribble, and one key pass against Sheriff. Sofascore gave Lukaku a 7.8 rating, the highest among Roma players.