Win, lose, or draw, today's match against Torino was always meant to test your mental health. Entering Round 38, one point behind Juventus for Italy's fourth and final Champions League spot, Roma had two objectives today: defeat Torino to keep the CL dream alive and hope that lowly Venezia would comply by defeating Juventus, securing another season in Serie A while also denying the Old Lady a spot in next season's Champions League.
Thanks to goals from Leandro Paredes and Alexis Saelemaekers, Roma completed the first task with ease. Unfortunately, the second part of the equation, Juve dropping points to relegation-battling Venezia, was entirely out of their control.
While Roma was busy taking Torino to task, the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino crowd provided real-time updates on the Venezia-Juve match, erupting into applause whenever Venezia took the lead over Juventus and falling eerily silent when they inevitably reclaimed the lead. Still, it was an unexpected yet entertaining alliance between two fanbases that would otherwise stand in opposition to one another.
Keeping one eye on the pitch and the other on the out-of-town scoreboard made it difficult to fully appreciate how well Roma was playing. And they played exceptionally well, surpassing the one-goal mark for the second consecutive match, a milestone they rarely achieved during their remarkable 19-match unbeaten streak.
Despite the disappointment of missing out on the Champions League again, take a moment to consider what Claudio Ranieri just accomplished. He took over a club teetering on the brink of the relegation zone in November, spent a few weeks settling in and getting to know his players before embarking on one of the longest unbeaten streaks in club history, going unbeaten in 21 of his final 22 Serie A matches.
Finishing in 5th place, just one _\*&%ing_ point away from a Champions League spot, certainly stings. However, restoring Roma's confidence, pride, and sense of self-worth was the greatest gift Claudio Ranieri could have given us.
And for that, Claudio, we're eternally grateful.
Grazie, Mister!