October 08, (THEWILL) – Romelu Lukaku scored twice as Roma secured a much-needed 4-1 away victory against Cagliari on Sunday, their first Serie A win on the road in over six months. However, the rout came at a cost, with Paulo Dybala forced off injured in tears after a heavy challenge.
The hosts have now lost six of eight league matches this term and remain stuck at the foot of the table. In contrast, Jose Mourinho’s men continued their winning after dropping points in two of their previous three outings.
Roma turned on the style after 19 minutes as Houssem Aouar and Lukaku netted in quick succession. The Belgian striker grabbed his second late on after Andrea Belotti had added a third. Matteo Prati thought he had scored a sensational debut goal for Cagliari, only for it to be disallowed. The home side did pull one back from the penalty spot through Nahitan Nandez after a Bryan Cristante handball.
The main concern for Mourinho will be the first-half injury to Dybala, who looked distraught as he limped off following a robust challenge. With several other players already sidelined, the loss of the Argentinean would represent a major blow.
Nonetheless, this was an important victory to get Roma’s season continue their upward track before the international break. Lukaku’s brace sees him climb to joint second top scorer in the Serie A level on five goals with Victor Osimhen.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
