Romelu Lukaku and Paulo Dybala each scored and Roma came back from a goal down to beat Cremonese 2-1 on Wednesday and set up a derby with Lazio in the Italian Cup quarterfinals.
The Serie B team had eliminated Roma in the quarterfinals last season and it looked like it might be a repeat when Frank Tsadjout put Cremonese ahead late in the first half.
But Dybala came on after halftime and set up Lukaku’s score before converting a penalty five minutes from time.
Roma captain Lorenzo Pellegrini had hit the crossbar midway through the first half.
“Yes, it appeared that Cremonese was our weak point, didn’t it? I think we underestimated the game and were not clinical enough. Despite having opportunities, we failed to capitalise on them. Football is like that. They had a chance and scored,” Dybala said after the match.
“They play well. They have a good footballing philisophy, and are a beautiful team to watch. But we reacted well in the second half. We had other chances and deserved to win,” he added.
“No, I believe we all did well, not just me. The three changes helped the team with their freshness. As I previously stated, we had opportunities both at the beginning and at the end. Azmoun also performed well. His energy and positivity are very important for us.
“I believe we struggled in the first half, but we had numerous chances in the second half and deserved to win and qualify.”
The derby with Lazio will be played next week, with Lazio having eliminated Genoa last month.
Atalanta beat Sassuolo 3-1 to qualify for the Italian Cup quarter-finals where they will meet AC Milan. On loan from Milan, Belgian striker Charles De Ketelaere scored the first two of Atalanta’s goals before also providing the assist for the third, scored by Russian Aleksei Miranchuk.
Milan defeated Cagliari 4-1 on Tuesday and will face Atalanta at the San Siro on January 10.
Holders Inter Milan were knocked out by Bologna in a game that went to extra time last month while champions Napoli were thumped 4-0 by Frosinone.
Juventus host Salernitana on Thursday looking for a date next week with Frosinone.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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