Chelsea passes on Gittens as FIFA opportunity emerges for Luiz Henrique; D'Amico renews push

Roma are among the clubs most interested in Club Brugge winger Carlos Forbs, according to the Belgian outlet Voetbalnieuws, as sporting director D'Amico looks to add an attacking winger for Gian Piero Gasperini in January. Before Roma's match against Sassuolo, D'Amico admitted he wanted to give Gasperini an attacking winger in the January window and had already started looking for the right profile. Alongside Bynoe-Gittens and Endrick, whose names were already known, Forbs has emerged as a serious target. The Portuguese winger is ready for the next step in his career, and his departure from Club Brugge in the summer is described as practically certain. A move in January is more complicated, but D'Amico could still open talks early to get ahead of the competition. Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham and Fiorentina are also tracking the 2004-born player. This season, Forbs has scored 5 goals and provided 8 assists in 14 appearances across the league and the Champions League.

Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported that Francesco Totti had taken a consultancy role in the sporting area at Fenerbahce, claiming he had met the club's president in Istanbul the previous day to discuss the details. Fenerbahce have firmly rejected the story, and the claims are not true, according to the club's official statement. According to the club's account, Totti is currently in Kuwait, and a stop in Istanbul was only a stopover during his journey. There was no meeting with the president and no agreement with Fenerbahce. The club issued a harsh official statement calling the report completely without foundation, and it criticised the media outlets that spread the reports without first verifying them. The Sozcu story was headlined "The football mind of Fenerbahce" and was subsequently picked up by other news organisations citing the same newspaper. Fenerbahce's statement, published on 9 November 2026, asked those outlets to act in line with journalistic principles and a sense of responsibility. Totti spent his entire playing career at Roma, from 1992 to 2017, scoring 307 goals, and his number 10 shirt has been retired by the club.

Fenerbahçe have strongly denied a Turkish press report that Francesco Totti is set to take a role in the club's football structure, calling the story "completely unfounded". The denial followed a report by the Turkish newspaper Sözcü, published on 9 November 2026 under the headline "The footballing mind of Fenerbahçe", which other outlets then picked up. In an official statement, the Istanbul club urged media organisations that had spread what it called false news without verifying it to act in line with the principles of journalism and a sense of responsibility. The original Sözcü report had claimed that the former Roma captain was very close to an operational role at Fenerbahçe, a club preparing a deep reorganisation of its sporting structure. According to that account, Totti had arrived in Istanbul the day before, where he was reportedly welcomed by the club's executives. Fenerbahçe president Aziz Yıldırım, who returned to lead the club last June, reportedly intended to renew the sporting organisation during the international break and ahead of the January transfer window. The proposed position was described as a football consultant, a figure who would contribute to sporting decisions and the building of the new project, rather than a purely ceremonial post. Details of any agreement had not been made public. The story carries particular weight given Totti's history with Roma. He played his whole career at the club until his retirement in 2017, then took a management role at Trigoria that ended with his resignation in 2019. A possible return to the club has been discussed several times since, without a definitive agreement being reached. A few weeks ago, in an interview with Corriere della Sera, Totti said: "If they need my knowledge of football, I am here", making clear he did not want a purely symbolic role. Totti has built several football-related ventures in the meantime, including CT10, a sports consultancy and management company, and It Scouting, an international scouting project. Those experiences could prove useful in any new Fenerbahçe structure, according to the report. The Sözcü story remains an unconfirmed rumour, and the club's statement has now firmly rejected it.

Barcelona have decided to sell left-back Alejandro Balde, who is finding game time increasingly hard to come by in La Liga, and Manchester United are now reportedly in the running for the Spanish wing-back alongside Roma, according to ElNacional.cat. The reports describe interest rather than a concrete negotiation. Balde has never started a match for Barcelona, and coach Flick has reportedly opened the door to his departure. Roma's interest is not new: the left-back profile was linked to the Giallorossi in the previous weeks as well. Balde would be an alternative to Oosterwolde for the left-back berth in Roma's defence. The article adds that Balde's profile has been mentioned in connection with Roma before, and that the left-side options under consideration include Balde as a replacement for Oosterwolde in the lower band of the defence.

Cristante is in Roma's squad for the trip to Napoli, according to the squad list published by Il Messaggero. Coach Gian Piero Gasperini is short in the final third, with Pellegrini, Dybala, Svilar and Koné all sidelined. He has only Mora and Soulé behind Malen, and is considering playing Cristante further forward. The squad list names Balerdi, Ghilardi, Hermoso, Koulierakis, Lulli, Mancini, Molina, N'Dicka, Rensch and Wesley in defence; Cristante, De Roon, Mora and Pisilli in midfield; and Malen, Soulé and Castro in attack. Camara and Di Nunzio are also listed. The situation is serious enough that Roma are expected to act in the January transfer window. The club must spend to give Gasperini at least two reinforcements between attack and the flanks. Gittens and Leweling remain on the list, and the club has not ruled out the complicated pursuit of Endrick. A new left-back name has emerged: Alejandro Balde of Barcelona, who is finding few minutes under Flick and has been offered by Jorge Mendes. His name joins that of Oosterwolde. Sky Sport reports that Roma are close to the final details of a contract renewal for Lulli, which would run to 2031. The deal has not yet been officially announced, and the last points must be settled before it is formalised. Speaking to Corriere dello Sport at the Amsterdam stop of the EA7 World Legends Padel Tour, Stekelenburg was asked about Svilar. He said: "If I had to put him in the top five... no, not yet. After all, there are Courtois, Neuer and others. But he is a young lad and he is doing an excellent job. He just has to keep growing." Asked to choose between Højlund and Malen if he were a sporting director, Graziani said: "Malen without thinking twice. Hojlund I like a lot, and sometimes he looks to me like a 'little Lukaku' the way he leads the attack and the physical battles he takes on, and he has a great sense of goal; but Malen is my ideal striker, for the way he attacks space, for his dribbling, for the acceleration he has in the last twenty metres and because he can roam across the whole attacking front."

Roma are reportedly eyeing a left-sided option, and Giallorossi.net's transfer column "Consigli per gli acquisti" has picked Union Berlin left-back Tom Rothe as its latest profile. The column is looking for a left-footed, athletic, physically robust player who can operate across the full flank in Gian Piero Gasperini's system, and Rothe is presented as fitting that brief. Born on 29 October 2004, Rothe is 21 and a natural left-footer standing 1.93 metres and weighing 85 kilos, which is unusually big for a flank player. He came through at St. Pauli and Borussia Dortmund, making his Bundesliga debut for BVB at just 17 and scoring straight away. After a loan spell at Holstein Kiel, where he finished with 4 goals and won promotion to the Bundesliga, Union Berlin bought him in summer 2024 for around 5 million euros. His natural position is left-back, but he can play as a wing-back and could be developed as a left-sided centre-back in a three. The article describes Rothe as more of a physical presence than a typical winger. He is strong in the air, holds his ground in duels and has a long stride, though he is not a pure sprinter, with a top speed of around 31.5 km/h. His main asset is the ability to run the flank continually, carry the attack and offer a physical presence in both phases. The writer argues this mix suits Gasperini's emphasis on one-on-one duels, and that at 21 he has considerable room to grow, so Roma would be buying a player to develop into a starter in the coming years. Rothe is not yet a finished product. He needs to improve the quality of his final pass, the accuracy of his crosses and his attacking one-v-one play. He creates more through physicality, running and runs into the box than through dribbling. He also had a fairly long lay-off between December and March last season. The article finds no pattern that would make him a particularly fragile player, but it is still an aspect to monitor. Union Berlin paid around 5 million euros for him, and his market value is now put at around 10 million euros. Taking into account his age, first-team status and potential, the German club would presumably ask for more, but the deal would still sit within a plausible economic range for Roma. One detail needs checking: when Union signed Rothe, Borussia Dortmund kept a buy-back right. Before any negotiation, it would be necessary to establish whether that clause is still valid and on what terms. The writer concludes that Rothe is not yet ready for a major European club, which is precisely what makes him interesting now. He is 21, left-footed, 1.93 metres tall, a regular in the Bundesliga and part of the Germany Under-21 set-up. Compared with Oosterwolde, he is less explosive but taller and has greater room for growth. The column wants to highlight young, physical players who remain affordable before they become too expensive.

Thirteen Roma players have been called up by their national teams for the November international break, a sign of the squad's growing standing at the highest level, according to Il Messaggero's Daniele Aloisi. Trigoria will be almost empty in the early part of the week, with the gates reopening on Wednesday, leaving Gian Piero Gasperini to prepare for the resumption with a heavily reduced group. Gasperini had already made clear his view of the break, calling the upcoming international fixtures "amichevoli o poco più" (friendlies or little more) after the match against Sassuolo. Argentina, the runners-up at the World Cup, begin a new cycle without Lionel Messi and have recalled Matías Soulé, Leonardo Balerdi and Santiago Castro for friendlies against Uruguay and Costa Rica. Wesley faces a much longer trip, travelling to Singapore with Brazil for games against the hosts and Japan. Italy boss Roberto Mancini has opted for youth for the Nations League matches against France and Belgium. Niccolò Pisilli and Daniele Ghilardi will join up at Coverciano, while Bryan Cristante remains at Trigoria. Donyell Malen has also been called up and will meet Xavi, the new Netherlands coach, for the first time. Rodrigo Mora returns to the senior national team a year after his last call-up, which coincided with the campaign that ended in victory in the Nations League.

Thirteen Roma players have been called up for international duty, leaving Trigoria largely empty during the break, and Gian Piero Gasperini will have to work with the few who remain in Rome. The Italian report notes that the club's form has made it a reservoir for national teams. Midfielder Manu Koné, who has just recovered, was not called up by France, a fortunate outcome for Gasperini. The first players back will be Ghilardi and Pisilli, who finish their commitments with the match against Belgium on 15 November and are expected at Trigoria the following day, giving them five days to prepare for the game against Parma. Malen returns on 17 November, while Gasperini will be reunited with Lulli and Koulierakis on 18 November. Players who travelled overseas will take longer: Balerdi, Soulé and Castro are due back in Rome by 19 November, just two days before the trip to Emilia. Mora, Wesley and Ndicka are also expected close to the match. The report suggests Gasperini may only have his full squad available on the eve of the clash at the Tardini. The timings make management difficult for Gasperini, who risks having the whole group together only the day before the fixture at the Tardini. The schedule leaves a short window for tactical preparation with the full squad.

Former Roma midfielder Edoardo Bove has praised Gian Piero Gasperini's side, saying the team "has great potential" and plays an almost suffocating, man-to-man style. Now at Watford, Bove said he had faced Gasperini in Italy and knew well the problems his football creates. Looking at his own future, he added: "Being in England makes me happy, it was a dream. But I don't hide that I have one eye on Italy." Francesco Totti has again spoken about a possible return to Roma and left the door open. "For me Roma is everything, but certain things are done in two, not alone," the former captain said, adding that he did not want to stir controversy. He also recognised the club's good form: "They are doing well, everything works and the team is very strong." Remembering Trigoria, he said: "It was my home. I arrived there at twelve and stayed for over thirty-five years." Roma face the final international break of 2026 with 13 players called up by their national teams. Soulé, Balerdi and Castro will join Argentina and Wesley will link up with Brazil. Italy have called up Pisilli and Ghilardi, while Mancini has been ruled out by a strain to his hip flexor. Malen will rejoin the Netherlands and Mora returns to the Portugal senior squad. Koulierakis, Lulli, Vásquez and De Marzi will also depart on international duty. Koné, by contrast, has been spared by France.