Cagliari's early penalty is not enough as Roma win 4-2
AS Roma4 – 2Cagliari 
AS Roma beat Cagliari 4-2 at the Stadio Olimpico, with the visitors creating far more than they usually manage on the road.
Cagliari were ahead inside ten minutes. M'Bala Nzola scored from the penalty spot after a VAR check, the video review that officials use for big decisions, which was confirmed at seven minutes. What followed was the more interesting part. Cagliari took 19 shots, when they average nine a game away from home this season, and for most of the evening they looked like a side making far more of their attacks than usual.
AS Roma answered quickly. Emanuele Lulli scored at 15 minutes after a pass from Nahuel Molina, and Niccolò Pisilli put them ahead six minutes later with a finish set up by Lulli. Roma's shot count was ordinary for them at home, but the quality behind those shots was not. Expected goals, a measure of how likely each chance was to go in, came to 2.92, well above their home average of 2.03.
Ball possession
Roma also had more of the ball, a share of 60% against their usual 56.5% at home. The more striking figure belonged to Cagliari, though. Their expected goals reached 2.29, close to three times what they average on the road, which means the visitors kept finding chances of real quality rather than simply firing in more shots. Roma's defence usually gives up chances worth around 1.2 goals at home, and on this occasion it let Cagliari create well beyond that.
Cagliari stayed in the game for most of the second half. Daniel Maldini levelled the score at 81 minutes with a goal set up by Adam Obert, a finish that earned Maldini a rating of 8.0 and his side a real route back into the match. Roma then struck twice in the next six minutes. Rodrigo Mora scored with a finish from Daniele Ghilardi's assist at 85 minutes, and Donyell Malen made it 4-2 at 87 minutes to settle the result.
Roma's four goals were well above their home average of 2.4, and Cagliari's two goals were also more than they usually score away, given an average of 0.8. Gollini made six saves for Roma, the most of any goalkeeper on the pitch, which kept the margin from becoming a larger problem for the home side. Lulli was involved in both of the first-half goals that gave Roma the lead, scoring one and creating the other, while Malen had four shots and scored the late winner.
The result leaves Roma in a stronger position than their defensive numbers might suggest. They are third in the table with 18 points from eight games, while Cagliari are ninth with 13.
Rodrigo Mora1 goal
D. Maldini1 goal
P. Gollini6 saves
E. Lulli1 goal · 1 assist