Davide Ballardini was thrilled to kickoff his Palermo coaching stint with victory over Roma last night.

Julio Baptista had put Roma ahead, but a Fabrizio Miccoli brace and Edison Cavani goal secured a home victory.

Ballardini remarked: "We struggled at the start, but once we got back on level terms then we did well to control the ball and deserved the win.

"I've hardly unearthed a new talent here. Miccoli is a star and all he needs to shine is to be in good physical shape.

"As for Cavani, he works so hard and runs constantly for the team. Because of that he can't always be sharp in front of goal, but he is young and will improve.

"The turning point of the game was when we closed up on their full-backs so we ended up with an extra man in midfield when regaining possession."