Five Things We Learned: De Rossi dictating as Fazio and Dzeko make influence known

The Giallorossi delivered a fourth straight clean sheet in the contest, underlining the strides the defensive unit have made in recent weeks.

Our columnist looks at some of the key factors to emerge from Sunday’s triumph.

Home record and vital win

By defeating Cagliari at the Olimpico, Roma impressively equalled the club record of 13 straight league home wins, which was set back in 1930. Despite not playing at their best, obtaining an all-important three points and keeping their fourth straight clean sheet were a testament to the side's character to grind out a result.

Federico Fazio summed up the victory aptly, pointing out: "We haven’t conceded so far in 2017. That’s an important statistic because it gives the rest of the team confidence. Winning like this is positive.

“I think we did make one or two errors today. But overall, we played a good game, so I praise the whole team for that.”

Fazio simply imperious yet again

Federico Fazio continued his exemplary form this season with another dominant display, in a match where he brilliantly shut down former Roma forward, Marco Borriello - who has a knack of scoring against his former employer. Courtesy of his intelligence, positional awareness and capacity to make the right decisions, the Argentine had all the answers for whatever his experienced adversary threw at him. Moreover, his dominance in the air and hulking strength saw him win an outstanding eight aerial duels.

His vital tactical acuity, which saw him competently switch between playing within a central defensive back two or three, plus his accomplished passing out from the back and inspirational leadership qualities, provided additional highlights from his display.

"As a centre-back he always gets on the ball,” a delighted Spalletti said. “He has time to come out and he’s good with the ball at his feet. He was a holding midfielder at the start of his career. He can play nice crisp passes.”

He added: "He organises the back line. He doesn’t let us down with what he offers. Right now we couldn’t get by without him."

Dzeko crucial as he decides the game

Although he missed a couple of gilt-edged chances, Edin Dzeko ultimately proved to be the difference maker by scoring a wonderfully well-taken winner. It was a great way to not only back up his fine Coppa Italia showing vs Sampdoria, but also notch his 20th goal this term and his 30th overall for Roma.

Spalletti was duly satisfied with his multi-faceted forward, stating: “I thought he did well; he played well on Thursday. He’s a player that’s becoming crucial for us. When teams drop and stay tight, he’s the only one who can truly threaten in the air."

Perotti, back to fitness, quickly at his elusive best

From his left-wing post, the Argentine's wicked dribbling ability and crafty movement combined to make him a hugely challenging proposition for Cagliari to handle. Whether cutting inside, going down the touchline or by exploiting little pokets of space, Diego Perotti's variations were crucial in unsettling the away side's marking scheme.

Indeed, his eye-catching seven successful dribbles and six shots punctuated what a menace he was.

De Rossi steps up to dictate the contest

Upon returning from suspension, Daniele De Rossi emphatically made up for lost time, as he used all his quality and experience to have a profound impact on the contest. On the attacking end, he dictated and orchestrated Roma's passing moves excellently, using his tidy range of passing to good effect.

Meanwhile, defensively his grit, aggression and anticipation saw him make a slew of essential interventions. His two key passes, two successful dribbles and seven successful defensive actions aptly illustrated his all-encompassing contribution.

Indeed, when paired alongside Kevin Strootman in the middle, Roma certainly are a hugely imposing and combative side for any team to deal with.