Gian Piero Gasperini conceded that his team suffered "a real blow to morale" during their 5-2 defeat to Serie A leaders Inter at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. 

Gasperini watched on as his team fell behind inside the opening minute thanks to Lautaro Martinez, but they hit back five minutes before half-time through Gianluca Mancini. 

However, Hakan Calhanoglu's stunning drive from distance in first-half stoppage time turned the game on its head, and the match ran away from Roma after the break. 

Martinez and Marcus Thuram netted two quickfire goals before Nicolo Barella's 63rd-minute effort all but sealed the win, though Lorenzo Pellegrini was able to net a consolation. 

But when assessing his team's display, Gasperini admitted that Martinez's second of the match in the 52nd minute was the killer blow for his players. 

"It wasn't easy conceding in the first few seconds, but after that I saw a good Roma, though going into the break behind was a real blow to morale," Gasperini told DAZN Italia.

"The third goal, in particular, knocked the wind out of us, and from then on we were really suffering."

Inter have now won nine of their last 11 Serie A matches against Roma (L2), although this was their first home victory against them in the competition since October 2023. 

Overall, Roma are the team the Nerazzurri have beaten the most times in the top flight (81), though the visitors' chances were not helped by Mancini's injury in the first half. 

The Italian, who is now the defender who has scored the most goals (four) against Inter in the three-points-for-a-win era in Serie A, was replaced at half-time by Daniele Ghilardi, and Gasperini believed his presence was missed in Roma's backline. 

"Undoubtedly, Mancini is a very important player for us," Gapserini added.

"When we have a complete squad, we are much more competitive, but are missing quite a few at the moment.

"I saw a good Roma in the first half; the final result makes it all look worse, but admittedly, the game was over at the third goal, and we must give credit to a strong Inter side."

Roma's defeat leaves them in sixth on 54 points, offering the chance for both Juventus and Como to pull further clear in the race for the Champions League places. 

The Opta supercomputer still assigns Roma a 10.8% chance of a top-four finish, but Gasperini conceded that his team would do everything in their power to reach UEFA's flagship competition from their remaining seven matches. 

"It is difficult for us, difficult for Juventus, for Como and Atalanta, all the teams challenging for one place," Gasperini said.

"We are a little behind right now, but we'll do everything possible to recover lost ground, that is for sure."

Como and Juventus are both in action on Monday, with Cesc Fabregas' team taking on Udinese while the Bianconeri welcome Genoa to Allianz Stadium later in the day.