Brave Boro battle through - 16 Mar 06
Middlesbrough fought an heroic rearguard action against Roma to progress to the quarter finals of the Uefa Cup, losing 2-1 on the night, but going through thanks to the away-goal rule.
Despite Roma dominating the game from start-to-finish Boro fought bravely in limiting them to few clear-cut chances, as Mark Schwarzer turned in a man-of-the-match performance with a first class goalkeeping display to keep the Teessiders in the contest.
Middlesbrough settled well and were quite happy to let the ball do the work during the opening exchanges. Cesare Bovo took an early sighter on Schwarzer's goal with an eighth minute free-kick, but the big Australian gathered with the minimum of fuss.
Rodrigo Taddei went close with a header from Bovo's free-kick, and when Edgar Alvarez breezed past a static Emanuel Pogatetz before pulling the ball back to the lurking Alessandro Mancini, Andrew Davies had to be on his toes to nick the ball away with a last-gasp tackle.
With 24 minutes on the clock, Boro nerves began to fray when Bovo caught Stewart Downing napping and unleashed a ferocious right-footed drive from 25 yards which hammered against the crossbar.
Pogatetz was undone again less than five minutes later, with Alvarez again getting the better of him after being played in by Taddei. Fortunately for the Austrian, Alvarez' finishing skills were poor as he dragged his shot across the face of Schwarzer's goal.
Boro were firmly under the cosh but, after a brief flurry of bookings, they stunned the Stadio Olimpico by taking the lead. Stewart Downing whipped in a left wing cross which allowed Hasselbaink to nip in front of Philippe Mexes before planting an unstoppable header past Gianluca Curci.
Roma responded quickly, however, and just before half-time they pulled level. Cristian Chivu combined well with Daniele de Rossi before feeding the ball to Taddei inside the area. He pulled the ball back to the edge of the six-yard box, where Mancini made no mistake.
Taddei saw a shot deflected narrowly wide as Roma went in search of a second, while at the other end Yakubu had a great chance to put Boro back in the lead but he got in an unseemly tangle whilst trying to get on the end of a Downing cross.
With their tifosi upping the volume, Roma threw everything at Boro as the second-half got underway. Mancini, ably supported by Chivu, posed a constant threat down the left wing and Franck Queudrue, on as a half-time replacement for Andrew Davies, looked to be in for a torrid 45 minutes.
Schwarzer pulled off a stunning reaction save to deny Mancini's header before doing even better in heroically smothering a de Rossi effort from point blank range three minutes later. Boro boss Steve McClaren reacted to the pressure by aiming to strangle the midfield as he brought Ray Parlour on for Yakubu.
The home side received an enormous boost when they were awarded a penalty in the 66th minute for an innocuous looking challenge which saw Parlour's inertia carry him into Stefano Okaka Chuka inside the area. Mancini stepped up to drill the spot-kick past Schwarzer, sending him the wrong way in the process.
With The Teessiders now edging the contest only on the away-goals rule, the Giallorossi switched to a 4-2-4 formation as they set off in search of a winner. Respite was brief for the Boro defence as each time they managed to ease the pressure, Roma responded by increasing their attacking intent.
Mexes drew yet another smart save from the hugely impressive Schwarzer before being given his marching orders for a second bookable offence after raising his hands. Although Roma pressed until the very death, Boro dug in resolutely to earn a thoroughly deserved victory, advancing into the final eight for the first time in their history.
Middlesbrough fought an heroic rearguard action against Roma to progress to the quarter finals of the Uefa Cup, losing 2-1 on the night, but going through thanks to the away-goal rule.
Despite Roma dominating the game from start-to-finish Boro fought bravely in limiting them to few clear-cut chances, as Mark Schwarzer turned in a man-of-the-match performance with a first class goalkeeping display to keep the Teessiders in the contest.
Middlesbrough settled well and were quite happy to let the ball do the work during the opening exchanges. Cesare Bovo took an early sighter on Schwarzer's goal with an eighth minute free-kick, but the big Australian gathered with the minimum of fuss.
Rodrigo Taddei went close with a header from Bovo's free-kick, and when Edgar Alvarez breezed past a static Emanuel Pogatetz before pulling the ball back to the lurking Alessandro Mancini, Andrew Davies had to be on his toes to nick the ball away with a last-gasp tackle.
With 24 minutes on the clock, Boro nerves began to fray when Bovo caught Stewart Downing napping and unleashed a ferocious right-footed drive from 25 yards which hammered against the crossbar.
Pogatetz was undone again less than five minutes later, with Alvarez again getting the better of him after being played in by Taddei. Fortunately for the Austrian, Alvarez' finishing skills were poor as he dragged his shot across the face of Schwarzer's goal.
Boro were firmly under the cosh but, after a brief flurry of bookings, they stunned the Stadio Olimpico by taking the lead. Stewart Downing whipped in a left wing cross which allowed Hasselbaink to nip in front of Philippe Mexes before planting an unstoppable header past Gianluca Curci.
Roma responded quickly, however, and just before half-time they pulled level. Cristian Chivu combined well with Daniele de Rossi before feeding the ball to Taddei inside the area. He pulled the ball back to the edge of the six-yard box, where Mancini made no mistake.
Taddei saw a shot deflected narrowly wide as Roma went in search of a second, while at the other end Yakubu had a great chance to put Boro back in the lead but he got in an unseemly tangle whilst trying to get on the end of a Downing cross.
With their tifosi upping the volume, Roma threw everything at Boro as the second-half got underway. Mancini, ably supported by Chivu, posed a constant threat down the left wing and Franck Queudrue, on as a half-time replacement for Andrew Davies, looked to be in for a torrid 45 minutes.
Schwarzer pulled off a stunning reaction save to deny Mancini's header before doing even better in heroically smothering a de Rossi effort from point blank range three minutes later. Boro boss Steve McClaren reacted to the pressure by aiming to strangle the midfield as he brought Ray Parlour on for Yakubu.
The home side received an enormous boost when they were awarded a penalty in the 66th minute for an innocuous looking challenge which saw Parlour's inertia carry him into Stefano Okaka Chuka inside the area. Mancini stepped up to drill the spot-kick past Schwarzer, sending him the wrong way in the process.
With The Teessiders now edging the contest only on the away-goals rule, the Giallorossi switched to a 4-2-4 formation as they set off in search of a winner. Respite was brief for the Boro defence as each time they managed to ease the pressure, Roma responded by increasing their attacking intent.
Mexes drew yet another smart save from the hugely impressive Schwarzer before being given his marching orders for a second bookable offence after raising his hands. Although Roma pressed until the very death, Boro dug in resolutely to earn a thoroughly deserved victory, advancing into the final eight for the first time in their history.
