Garcia: Roma showed character

Rudi Garcia felt Roma showed superb resilience to beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in the Champions League after giving away a two-goal lead at the Stadio Olimpico.

Mohamed Salah and Edin Dzeko found the net before the interval to give Roma a comfortable advantage, but Admir Mehmedi and Javier Hernandez levelled with two quick goals after the break.

Miralem Pjanic eventually made the difference, however, when he converted an 80th-minute penalty that saw Roma climb to second place in Group E with five points from four games, one point ahead of Leverkusen. 

Garcia was satisfied with his side’s performance.

“We could have scored three or four in the first half, so we were a little rueful in the dressing room at half time,” Garcia said at a news conference.

“We’re working on our defensive lapses. Usually the team comes out firing after the break, not tonight. The team still showed character to come back after going 2-2, winning and claiming the three points. We did well not to collapse after it went to 2-2.

“The team once again showed they can handle pressure. We showed the right competitive spirit in the first half but less so after the break. We have to improve on that. But I’m pleased with the game as whole. The lads responded out there as they needed to.”