Nightmare Roma start as Gasperini hauls Ziolkowski off after 30 minutes
Roma invested €6.6m in Jan Ziolkowski, but Gian Piero Gasperini hauled the Poland international off just 30 minutes into his full debut after a nightmare Europa League start.
The 20-year-old had so far made only three substitute appearances in the Giallorossi jersey, having made the transfer from Legia Warsaw on August 29.
He was finally given the opportunity to shine with his first start for the club in this evening’s Europa League match against Viktoria Plzen.
You can see how that game unfolds on the Liveblog.
Ziolkowski pays for poor Roma start
However, his game lasted only 30 minutes, in which he was turned far too easily by Prince Adu for the opening goal.
Viktoria Plzen doubled their lead thanks to a ferocious Cheick Souaré strike from distance into the far bottom corner beyond Mile Svilar.
With the team 2-0 down, Gasperini surprised many by making a tactical substitution at the 30th minute, hauling off defender Ziolkowski to introduce attacking winger Stephan El Shaarawy.
This allowed him to move Zeki Celik into the back three from his wider role.
It is a blow for the confidence of Ziolkowski, who barely even looked as Gasperini as he trudged off to take his seat on the bench, consoled by Bryan Cristante.