Mats Hummels: First appearance in Rome! It ended in drama

Many German football fans were looking excitedly towards Rome on Sunday afternoon (September 15th), where Mats Hummels was set to make his debut for AS Roma. After a few weeks without a contract, the former Dortmund player signed for the club during the international break.

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It was immediately clear that Mats Hummels will not be bored at his new club. On the fourth matchday of Serie A, the struggling AS Roma suffered another setback. And the new central defender could only watch helplessly.

Mats Hummels stews on the bench

Roma really got off to a bad start in the new season. The proud traditional club didn't win a single game in its first three matches. This is one of the reasons why they strengthened their squad again and brought in the 2014 world champions, among others.

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But Mats Hummels will have to wait at least another week for his first appearance. In the duel against Genoa, he spent the entire time on the bench. Instead of wearing his jersey for the first time, it was also just his first “appearance” in training clothes and with the substitutes.

Last-minute drama

The big topic after the final whistle was something else anyway. AS Roma's crisis worsened once again. Hummels' colleagues had already taken a 1-0 lead in the first half and were able to hold on to it until the final phase.

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Everything looked like the long-awaited first win of the season – until all hopes were dashed. In the sixth (!) minute of injury time, Genoa equalized with a header and snatched the victory from the Romans.

Will Mats Hummels turn things around?

Could Hummels have prevented the late equalizer if he had been on the pitch? That is of course pure speculation. However, his chances of being on the pitch for the first time soon are likely to increase. AS Roma will next play against Udinese Calcio.