Everything moves very quickly in football. Having become a pariah in Marseille, Leonardo Balerdi made his debut with AS Roma on Saturday. The Argentine defender replaced Evan Ndicka in the 67the minute against Atalanta and his entry into play changed everything. While it was trailing at home after a goal from Ederson (0-1, 47e), La Louve turned things around at the end of the match thanks to Mario Hermoso (1-1, 89e) and Matías Soulé (2-1, 90e+3).
In the standings, this third consecutive success allows the Giallorossi to remain undefeated at the top of Serie A with Inter Milan, who dominated Naples (3-2). And they can thank the former OM captain (27 years old) who, according to ex-Italian international defender Fabio Petruzzi, interviewed on Retesport radio, “was the biggest change” And “the decisive man who restored balance to Roma and enabled the comeback”.
Leonardo Balerdi compared to Alessandro Nesta!
An opinion shared by many observers. Journalist for DAZN, Tommaso Turci believes that the neo-Roman has
“rebalanced the duel with (Nikola) Krstovic”.
“Guys, but Balerdi, damn, how strong he is!” In Marseille, they are really stupid”, “Superb debut for Leonardo Balerdi at Roma. He was important, winning all the defensive duels”, “Mamma mia, what an incredible entry! »tweeted Roman supporters.
“I didn’t know the elegance and defensive cleanliness of Balerdi, great discoveryfor his part appreciated the Milanese journalist Alessandro Jacobone. We’ll see if he has continuity, but tonight he looked like Alessandro Nesta. » A nice comparison for a player who disappointed with Ciel et Blanc. Phocéens who, for their part, took on water at the Vélodrome against Paris FC (2-3) while defending “like a team of kids”says Bruno Genesio.
