Roma moved out in front at the halfway stage of Group A as they hammered CFR Cluj 5-0 at the Stadio Olimpico on Thursday night.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored the club’s fastest-ever goal in Europa League (57 seconds) to get the side off to the perfect start, and Paulo Fonseca’s players never looked back – as Roger Ibanez and Borja Mayoral subsequently added their first goals for the club before half-time.
In the second half, a second strike for Mayoral and a late finish from substitute Pedro Rodriguez rounded off a comfortable team display.
There was even the opportunity for a further positive to emerge from the night: as 18-year-old academy graduate Tommaso Milanese made his debut for the Giallorossi.
The midfielder provided the assist for Pedro’s finish.
Roma have one more game before the international break – they travel to Liguria to face Genoa on Sunday.
“Prolific AS Roma night! Fastest UEL goal, made in Armenia. Now focus on Sunday,” Mkhitaryan tweeted after the game.
