Roma v Internazionale - as it happened

Evening all Glad to be here for the biggest game of the Serie A season so far. Admittedly there haven't been very many just yet, but regardless of where we are in the season, Roma v Inter is a massive game. In the forever-changed landscape of Italian football post-Calciopoli match-fixing scandal, it might even be what Sir Alex Ferguson would call " the fixture". In the four seasons since Calciopoli, Roma have been the only team to threaten Inter's hegemony. They have finished second in three of those seasons and in two of them they went into the final game with their title hopes still alive. They have met Inter in three out of four Coppa Italia finals during that span, and triumphed twice. Last season this was the fixture that oh-so-nearly defined the entire season. Roma, flying high during what would end up as a 24-game unbeaten run, beat Inter 2-1 to close to within a point of the leaders. A game later they would go top, having overcome an 11-point deficit to become the first team other than Inter to lead Serie A after more than 11 games of a season since Calciopoli. There was another twist to come yet, though, and defeat to Sampdoria would eventually cost Roma the title. Since then the two teams' paths have diverged. Roma, after a summer of upheaval in which the bank Unicredit lost patience with the owners' failure to pay off debts and seized 49% of the club, have started the season terribly, taking two points from four games and leading some even to suggest that Ranieri could be for the chop . Inter, despite a change of manager, have swiftly returned to the top. Tonight's game, then, might not carry the same title-race turning potential as last year's equivalent, but it is certainly significant. Roma need to kickstart their season and there could be no better team against whom to do it. Inter have the opportunity to increase their advantage over a supposed title rival to 11 points already. We have seen last year that such problems are not insurmountable, but 24-game unbeaten runs don't come along every year ... Team news: Here are the teams - Roma are expected to employ a diamond midfield with Menez playing in behind Totti and Borriello. Inter will be in their standard 4-2-3-1, though under Benitez it has become more of a 4-2-1-3, with the wide forwards Goran Pandev and Samuel Eto'o under instruction to press much higher up the pitch and the latter in particular allowed to get away with a lot less tracking back than was required under Mourinho. Eto'o, revelling in the reduced defensive responsibility, has scored eight goals in seven games so far this season. Roma: Lobont, Cassetti, N. Burdisso, Juan, Riise, Perrotta, Pizarro, De Rossi, Menez, Totti, Borriello. Subs: Doni, G. Burdisso, Cicinho, Brighi, Baptista, Adriano, Vucinic. Inter: Julio Cesar, Maicon, Lucio, Cordoba, Chivu, Stankovic, Cambiasso, Pandev, Sneijder, Eto'o, Milito. Subs: Castelazzi, Santon, Muntari, Mariga, Obi, Coutinho, Biabiany. If you needed any more reasons to watch this game ... History suggests there will be plenty of goals. These two haven't drawn 0-0 since 2003-04, and since then matches between the two have seen an average of 3.52 goals per game. 1 min Away we go. "Do you think Roma have any chance of getting something out of this match, and what do you think is to blame for their poor start (apart from the uncertainty surrounding the ownership)," asks Cian Boland. "Also, can you imagine any formation in which Totti, Adriano and Borriello could all play together? Finally, is Adriano still fat and out of shape, and do you think he'll ever be able to emulating his Inter form at Roma?" Crikey - that's a lot of questions to answer all at once. In brief: They have a chance, yes, though if I was betting my money would be on Inter. I can imagine such a formation, but I'm not sure you'd want to have two players who run as little as Totti and Adriano in the same team. Adriano is in better shape, though that is not necessarily to say he is in great shape. And no, I don't ever think we'll see the Imperatore of old again. 2 mins An early test for Lobont - making his first-ever league start in place of the injured Julio Sergio - as Sneijder whips in an inswinging corner. Lobont pounds it away with a two-fisted punch but the ball comes straight back at him from the boot of Stankovic, who was lurking just outside the area. Lobont parries his shot away, but the flag was up for offside anyway. 4 mins Reasonably high-energy start on both sides but nothing particularly incisive as yet. The two managers, by the way, coached against each other in Spain way back when (though never in England, as Ranieri left Chelsea just as Benítez arrived at Liverpool). Benítez has not yet lost a game against Ranieri. 6 mins Diego Milito pouts in the referee's direction as the official awards a goal-kick following a challenge by Juan on the striker down by the goalline. Right decision it was too. 7 mins Roma win their first corner after a moment of indecision in the Inter area - Borriello was always going to be last to the ball but a lapse in communication between Lucio and Julio Cesar led the goalkeeper to abort his attempt to smother the ball at the last, leaving the ball to bobble behind off his knees. He redeems himself by going up to claim the corner as it hangs in the air above the six-yard box. 9 mins Another corner, this time down the other end and again Lobont punches clear though this time without conviction. Again Stankovic gobbles up the loose ball, but his goalbound effort thwacks away off the face of Juan. 11 mins Inter beginning to look a little bit more threatening here. Benítez suggested in the build-up that he wanted his team to play a high-possession game, holding the ball and suffocating Roma, and that is what Inter are doing at the minute. Eto'o eventually adds a little impetus, swerving into the area from the left, but he doesn't get the shot right at all and it winds up going out for a throw-in. 12 mins And now it's Sneijder scampering into the area to drag a low shot through the legs of Burdisso and on target but without enough force to beat Lobont. 13 mins Roma break with Riise chasing a long ball forward but he can't quite tame the bounce inside the Inter area. 15 mins Jeremy Menez - now there's a frustrating player. Roma had put together one of their nicer moves of the match so far, a series of quick interchanges carrying them from their own half deep into Inter's, but after darting into the box the Frenchman scuffs a woefully underhit pass back in the vague direction of Totti that is far too easily cut out. He didn't even look up before playing it. 17 mins "Is the Scudetto going to Inter again or with Benítez perhaps needing time to settle is there a chance for someone else," asks @footballlog on Twitter as the Nerazzurri waste another corner. Right now you would be foolish not to favour them - Roma, Milan and Juve have all had such stuttering starts to the season that they could have a significant lead before anyone else even gets started. That's why a win for Roma today would be so important. 18 mins Big penalty shout for Roma as Lucio catches Borriello's face, and none of the ball, inside the area. The referee was having none of it, but I honestly can't see why - that was a very dangerous challenge and you suspect that if it had happened outside the box it would have been not only a free-kick but also a yellow card. Denied Roma a decent chance too, as Borriello had been trying to get his head to a ball that had been parried up into the air by Cesar only a few yards out. 19 mins Borriello gets treatment. The referee gets an earful. 22 mins Samuel Eto'o beats the offside trap to get in behind the Roma defence but he's too close to the byline and Burdisso is able to get back as the striker cuts onto his right foot, throwing himself before the subsequent shot to block eight yards out. 24 mins "Empty seats at one of the fixtures of the season," sighs Craig Smasskjaer. "A ground which is home to the team that finished two points off the top, and yet they are on the brink of financial ruin. How? Why? Is this just a Roma thing? Or is this an Italian thing? We can all castigate the English game, but given this current state of affairs and recent history, it seems that Serie is as mad as a bag of stray cats. Discuss." Hmm, again, I think you're asking a bit much of me in the middle of a minute-by-minute report Craig, but clearly the attendance thing is a big issue. Interestingly last year attendances in Serie A were their best in a very long time, and the corresponding fixture was not only sold out but probably had a few thousand 'extras' in too. The introduction of the tessera del tifoso (fan ID card required to attend away games) has hurt attendances this season though - especially as some Ultra groups are boycotting all games as a result. Plus there's a recession on, it's a huge stadium and it's very easy in Italy to see pretty much every game on telly with a range of competitively priced TV deals. 27 mins Stankovic does that thing he does - looking up somewhere between 20 and 25 yards out and letting fly with a daisy cutter that Lobont spills at first before eventually smothering. As a former Lazio man Stankovic is hearing a fair few whistles every time he touches the ball tonight. 29 mins Roma are getting some good possession here in the last 5-10 minutes, toying with the ball on the edge of the Inter area, but at the moment the final ball just isn't there. Perrotta looks to thread one through the eye of Inter's defensive needle, but there's no room for anyone to give chase. 31 mins Both managers are patrolling the very edge of their technical areas, Benítez gesticulating and bawling out his players while Ranieri stands pulling faces with hands on hips. 32 mins "I seem to remember Menez being mentioned a while ago on the football weekly podcast as quite an exciting prospect," recalls Ross Kerr. "How has he developed over the last year or two? Is there more to come still?" I'm not sure if there is to be honest Ross. Menez at Roma has always been one of those players who can look sublime one week, then ridiculous for the next three. His good days - full of invention, movement and speed of thought - always give you hope but many regular viewers have given up hoping he will ever find consistency. 33 mins Slightly naughty that by Chivu - putting his arm across Cassetti as he raced ahead of Totti appealing for a throughball. That said Cassetti went down very easily as well. The referee chooses to ignore the incident. Totti crashes a shot into Cordoba's torso. 35 mins Rapid breaks in both directions - one after the other - as Burdisso's header is blocked and so is a shot from Perrotta at the other end. 36 mins Lucio needs some treatment after a collision and while he's receiving it, Chivu gets shown a yellow card. I'm not sure what for, though the commentator seems to be suggesting it could be for that brush with Cassetti a few minutes back. 38 mins Stankovic has clearly been having visions of his name on tomorrow's front pages and he nearly makes it happen with a volley from 25 yards that crashes off the crossbar. Taking a pass from the right wing he teed himself up with a little flick then let fly with a dipping effort that had Lobont beaten but didn't come down quite fast enough. 40 mins Totti looks for Borriello by the corner of the six-yard box but Lucio just about gets his boot to the ball before the attacker can. "I'm a Roma fan but would have been a soft penalty (18 mins)," tweets @dannyclyro. "The ball clearly changes path and speed after Lucio swings a boot at it." Even if it does, though, he's got his boot at face height (and Borriello is a good 6ft tall) inside the area. That's dangerous play even if he hadn't made contact with the striker's face. And he did make contact. 43 mins The energy levels have just dropped a smidgin here towards the end of the half. Possession stats show it's about even (Inter have 52%), so Benítez's tactic hasn't necessarily been implemented quite as he envisaged. 45 mins Menez clips one forward for Borriello to chase but there's too much on it and the ball runs straight to Julio Cesar. We'll have two minutes of injury time. 45 mins (+1) Time for one last Roma corner before the break ... 45 mins (+2) The corner is played short to Totti, who clips it towards the back post where it is half-cleared. Pizarro then whips the ball back over to the forward, who had created a yard of space for himself but miscontrolled the ball and knocked it straight out for a goal-kick. Peepety-Peeep! Half-time. I'm off to grab a cuppa, then I'll be back with some half-time emails. Inter intrigue "With the departure of Mourinho, the resurgence of the match fixing allegations, Inter's failure to bring in any new players and Ibrahimovic and Robinho signing for AC Milan, do you think confidence at Inter is a little fragile," asks James Goyder. Not really to be honest James - I actually have been impressed by how good the vibes have been around Inter since Mourinho left. Nobody has really sought to move on (though Maicon didn't exactly shoot down talk of a move to Real Madrid, it was mostly a ploy to try and squeeze a bigger contract out of Inter), and although Diego Milito's agent was complaining about his client not feeling so loved by Benítez the other day, others such as Eto'o have thrived. Milan, for all their big signings and bravado, haven't exactly come flying out of the blocks (though they did win earlier today), so what's to be worried about? Totti trouble "Do you think the time has come for Totti to be dropped," ponders Adrian Curran. "I think we've reached the stage where he's more of a hindrance than a help to Roma. I don't think Ranieri is the man to make a decision as big as that though." We actually talked about this on Football Weekly this week - and yes, I do think Totti poses a problem these days. I'm not sure it's time to drop him altogether, but he does not work as hard for the team as you would like and at times he can be ponderous in possession. Ranieri to his credit has been quite brave with dropping Totti for some games and substituting him in others (notably when Roma were losing the derby against Lazio last year) but honestly I'm not sure a manager exists anywhere in the world with the stature required to properly stand up to Totti in Rome. The best you can do is find ways to keep him onside, because if he's not your chances of surviving at Roma aren't good. Bear in mind this is a man who just last year signed a new 10-year deal that provides for five years as a director after he finishes playing. Little delay The players are out but it seems one or two of Inter's want to change their boots. Why this couldn't happen in the changing room during the break is unclear. 46 mins No sooner has the half got underway than Chivu is penalised for checking the run of Menez. He needs to be careful - much more of that and he'll be seeing a second yellow. 47 mins More frustrating stuff from Menez, who shows a nice burst of acceleration to get ahead of the attendant defenders down the right, only to then shank his cross away over the crossbar. Rubbish. 48 mins Anything Menez can do, it seems, Totti can do better. Er Pupone takes a long ball forward down elegantly on the edge of the box only to then flick the ball through into the box with his heel despite the fact he had absolutely no team-mates anywhere near. What a waste. 50 mins Ooh - matter of inches there for Inter as a corner is half-cleared and then swung back in towards an unmarked Cambiasso five-yards out. He manages to get the faintest of touches but it's not quite enough to direct the ball on target and it hops just wide of the far post. With a little hair on his head it might just have gone in. 52 mins Stankovic picks up a booking for a shove on Menez as the Frenchman was surging forwards across the halfway line. 53 mins A Chivu cross sails a long way over the heads of his team-mates in the box before bobbling away for a goal-kick on the far side. Some of the final balls on both sides tonight have been absolute bobbins. 55 mins So, so close there for Roma. Menez finally gets a delivery right, sending a low pass right across the middle of the six-yard box but despite sliding in Borriello just can't quite get a toe to it. If only he had size 47 feet like Ibrahimovic. 56 mins Inter race down the other end and Eto'o drives a low shot in from just outside the area but a nick off a defender's boot on the way through takes the sting out of it and Lobont saves. 58 mins "To follow on from the Totti trouble issue (see half-time emails), how would you compare it to Raul's situation at Real," asks Ross Kerr. "Someone who stayed as true to his club as Totti has but won a lot more but then offered to step down for his team. Any chance of Totti expressing such humility?" Given that contract I mentioned, it seems unlikely. Totti wants to finish his playing career at Roma, and then start a new one there too. 60 mins Interesting - Roma have been awarded an indirect free-kick right on the edge of Inter's six-yard box. It seems Julio Cesar picked the ball up, then dropped it, leaving it on the floor for a few seconds, then picked it up again, which you're not allowed to do. Here comes the free-kick ... 61 mins The ball is played short to Totti and the crowd roars with excitement as they see his shot rocket over the onrushing Julio Cesar, but unfortunately for them it also flies straight over the middle of the bar. 62 mins Credit where it's due for Menez, he has at least provided some forward thrust and after switching to the left flank he wins another Roma corner. This one comes back to Cassetti lurking at the back of the area, but he pulls his shot wide of the far post. 64 mins I'm beginning to think I may have jinxed this game with my talk of high-scoring fixtures before kick-off. 65 mins Menez attempts to put Perrotta through inside the box but the ball breaks off a defender and is running to Julio Cesar. Perrotta, reasonably enough, thinks he can beat the keeper to it and lunges in, only to then get a yellow card for his troubles. I'm not sure if the referee thought he got there too late or if he was reacting to the fact the keeper seemed to have been hurt, but it seems harsh. Totti, meanwhile, gets in a shoving match with someone. That the referee does overlook. 67 mins Rafael Benítez is sending on Sulley Muntari in place of Diego Milito. We haven't seen a lot of the striker tonight but that is a rather negative change. I guess Benítez would reason that a point is better for Inter than Roma. Milito won't be happy - he has complained already this season about being substituted too regularly. 69 mins Pandev goes into the book for a late challenge on Totti. Then, after the ball is pumped into the box Burdisso also gets a yellow card - apparently for jumping unfairly with Julio Cesar. 71 mins I'm surprised Ranieri hasn't made any changes yet - he's got plenty of attacking options on the bench in Vucinic, Adriano, Baptista, Brighi. 72 mins Borriello bounces off defenders like a pinball inside the area but somehow keeps the ball under control before squaring it in the direction of Totti, but it's cut out by Lucio. 74 mins Second change for Inter, with Coutinho coming on to replace Pandev after Stankovic wallops another optimistic effort over the bar from distance. 76 mins Here at last is that first change for Roma, and it is Francesco Totti who will come off to be replaced by Mirko Vucinic. Totti looks somewhat narked, as does the man holding the now infamous " No Totti No Party banner ". 77 mins Best chance in some time for Inter, as Juan's loose touch lets Samuel Eto'o in and the striker races away into the box before crushing his shot over the bar with the Brazilian still desperately trying to recover. 78 mins Menez is the latest player to be shown a yellow card after he chops Sneijder down near midfield. 79 mins The Frenchman had a chance to make immediate amends there, racing ahead of Chivu down the left but also the team-mates offering support in the middle. With no one left to cross to eight yards out he opts to shoot himself, but his low effort skids away and some way wide of the far post. 80 mins Yup, I've definitely jinxed this haven't I? 82 mins Another chance for Eto'o, as he, Coutinho and Muntari put together a neat passing triangle on the edge of the box that sets the striker free to have a dig 15 yards out. He gets plenty behind his effort but Lobont is down sharply to block, and Muntari succeeds only in slamming his follow up effort into Cassetti's face from about six inches. Impressively, the defender is back on his feet within a few seconds. 84 mins Inter are enjoying the better of these last few minutes, though Vucinic drives forward with enthusiasm on the break before his attempted throughball for Borriello is intercepted. 85 mins Eto'o snatches at a shot from the corner of the six-yard box and it fizzes wide, though he is adamant that there was a touch off one of the pair of defenders in close attendance. The officials disagree. 87 mins Marco Borriello and Jeremy Menez are coming off to be replaced by Julio Baptista and Matteo Brighi. Which is curious, since Adriano had stripped out of his tracksuit and looked for all the world like he was about to come on, before then being called back to the bench at the last second so that Baptista could come on. Is someone on the Roma coaching staff not sure which is which? Either way, seems a little late to be leaving these changes to me. 88 mins Baptista ensure the stat sheet will show that he had a shot on target, though in truth it was a speculative and entirely unthreatening one from 25 yards that dribbled apologetically into the hands off Julio Cesar. 90 mins Three minutes of injury time coming up. Doesn't exactly feel like a goal is coming for eithe team. GOAL! Roma 1-0 Inter (Vucinic - 90 mins +1) What was I just saying? Oh. There was no apparent danger as Daniele De Rossi took up the ball out by the right touchline in a relatively deep position but he swung an absolute peach of a cross in towards the near corner of the six-yard box and despite starting his run with three Inter defenders between him and the goal Vucinic managed to get ahead of them all to glance a diving header across Julio Cesar and into the far corner. That's a fine, fine goal. Peep! Peep! Peeeeeep! An extra minute of injury time is added after the goal but Inter are shell-shocked and it is Roma who come closest to scoring again, as Baptista's low effort is smothered by Julio Cesar. A huge win for Roma - their first of the season and a massive morale boost coming as it does against the champions. It should also help quieten some of the chatter about Claudio Ranieri's job security. For Rafael Benítez, meanwhile, it is a first domestic defeat with Inter and a missed opportunity to deal a potentially fatal blow to a title rival's season. I can't help but feel he and his team could have been bolder, especially in the second half. Anyway, thanks for joining me and for all your emails. Sorry for using more. And for that whole jinxing thing.