Their first away victory seemed to be on the cards following Francesco Totti’s strike, but in stoppages Cicinho’s spectacular own goal levelled the scores.

“Bologna tried to leapfrog the midfield and at the end we did it all by ourselves. We did what we had to and nothing more, so it was sufficient as performances go.”

It is an improvement for a side that hadn’t got a single away point and had lost its last four Serie A matches on the trot, but considering the 3-1 Champions League triumph midweek there is bound to be a sense of disappointment.

“After the win over Chelsea it was only normal we wouldn’t be particularly sharp. We needed to push with the enthusiasm from that success, but I don’t have many players in good shape and we must accept the 1-1.

“We had difficulties imposing our style of play, but once we took the lead it’s not as if the three points would have been undeserved.

“We tried to play the same way we did against Chelsea, but Bologna sat back more and clamped us down.”

To make matters worse, Spalletti lost Philippe Mexes and Alexander Doni to injury during the match.

“A few others had fitness problems, so I had very few options on the bench either.”

Spalletti is sticking with the new diamond midfield formation that did so well against Chelsea.

“Totti needs to improve his fitness levels, which is why I am putting someone next to him who can hold up the ball, otherwise we risk getting pushed back too much,” he explained.

“When Alberto Aquilani and Julio Baptista return, we can go back to our old system.”