Mourinho’s Roma leapfrogs Inter Milan and AC Milan in Serie A top four race

Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma overtook Inter Milan and AC Milan after beating Torino 1-0 in their Serie A clash at The Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino on Saturday evening. 

Paulo Dybala's early penalty was all Mourinho's men needed to see off the challenge of their host. 

Roma set out with no recognised striker, with Paulo Dybala playing as a false nine and Ola Solbaaken playing behind alongside Stephan El Shaaraway. 

The decision to play without a recognised striker looked strange on paper, but it never hurt Roma as they took the lead inside eight minutes. 

Jose Mourinho’s men took the lead through Paulo Dybala’s penalty after Perr Schurrs handled a goalbound effort in the box. 

Dybala’s penalty gave Roma the perfect start, with Torino having to chase the game. The Turin-based side were in for a difficult match following Roma’s early opener, but they did dominate possession in the first half. 

Ivan Juric’s side almost found the equaliser through a speculative effort from Ricardo Rodriguez, but the Swiss’ strike was deflected just wide. 

Torino continued to dominate possession, but despite having a major share of the ball, they never troubled the Yellow and Reds. 

Roma never really looked to be in trouble at the back as they went into the break with a comfortable one-goal lead. 

The second half started the same way the first ended, with Torino dominating possession once again. 

But they could not convert the possession into a goal as Roma’s defence remained tight at the back. 

However, after toiling, Juric’s men were able to fashion out one chance, but Rui Patricio did brilliantly to tip Aleksei Miranchuk's header away for a corner. 

Miranchuk’s header proved to be Torino’s only real chance in the game, as Roma held on for a vital 1-0 win. 

The result lifts Roma into third with 53 points, two points behind Lazio, who play Juventus later on Saturday.