Cristante ends Roma's seven-year Champions League goal drought

Roma host Cagliari at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday 27 October at 20:45 in the ninth round of Serie A, with Gian Piero Gasperini weighing up some changes after the 3-3 draw at Napoli's Maradona. Roma remain unbeaten in Serie A and sit third with 18 points from eight matches, having drawn their head-to-head clashes against Inter, Como and Napoli. Cagliari, coached by Fabio Pisacane, are ninth on 13 points and come into the game on the back of two consecutive defeats, against Monza and Bologna. Roma are looking to return immediately to winning ways to stay within touching distance of the top of the table. The trip to Naples was described as a costly one, and Gasperini is considering some rotation. Dybala is returning towards the matchday squad but is expected to start on the bench. Svilar, Koné and Pellegrini are ruled out. Gollini keeps his place in goal, while Ghilardi could get a chance in defence alongside N'Dicka and Balerdi. Cristante starts in midfield from the first minute alongside Pisilli. Lulli and Molina are favoured on the flanks, with Soulé and Rodrigo Mora expected to support Malen up front. For Cagliari, Pisacane must do without Winks, who is sidelined by lumbar pain, as well as Felici and Idrissi. Trepy returns to the matchday squad. Yerry Mina is set to return to the starting line-up in defence, while Sugawara and Zé Pedro compete for a place on the right. Gagliardini will take Winks' place in midfield, with Maldini and Adopo expected to play behind Mendy, although Kevin Carlos remains a possible option. The match will be broadcast exclusively on DAZN, available through the DAZN app on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets, consoles and computers. There will be no live broadcast on the traditional Sky Sport channels. Kick-off at the Stadio Olimpico is set for 20:45 on Tuesday 27 October. Bookmakers make Roma clear favourites. A Roma win is priced on average between 1.33 and 1.35, a draw around 4.90-5.00, and a Cagliari win between 8.25 and 9.60. The market also expects a game with at least three goals, with Over 2.5 favoured over Under, and No Goal offered at a slightly lower price than Goal. The 2-0 correct score to Roma carries the shortest odds at around 6.50, ahead of 1-0 and 2-1. ROMA (3-4-2-1): Gollini; Ghilardi, Ndicka, Balerdi; Lulli, Cristante, Pisilli, Molina; Soulé, Mora; Malen. Manager: Gasperini. CAGLIARI (4-3-2-1): Caprile; Sugawara, Mina, Rodriguez, Obert; Romano, Gagliardini, Deiola; Adopo, Maldini; Mendy. Manager: Pisacane. Referee: Ermanno Feliciani (Teramo). Assistants: Zingarelli and Fontani. Fourth official: Mariani. VAR: Ghersini. AVAR: Camplone.

Donyell Malen has gone three consecutive Serie A matches without a goal, a first for him since he joined Roma last January, and Roma host Cagliari at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday in a midweek fixture for the ninth matchday. Malen failed to score against Inter, against Como, where his controversial red card meant he missed the Genoa game, and against Napoli. The dry spell is considered a natural part of a demanding season, and it is not expected to dent his overall output, given the penalty he scored against Slovan Bratislava last Tuesday. Malen will, as he has for the past ten months, lead the attack for Gian Piero Gasperini's side. The fixture against Cagliari brings back fond memories. Malen's last meeting with the Sardinians came on Monday, 9 February, when he was the star of a 2-0 Roma win. He scored a brilliant double, first chipping Caprile in the 25th minute and then finishing a decisive run in the 65th minute to seal the result. Roma's striker has shown that he can deliver against Cagliari at home, and a similar performance would help end his recent barren run. Francesco Totti was in the stands that evening, and Malen has recently shared a warm embrace with the Roma legend.

Roma goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini produced a key save against former team-mate Matteo Politano during Napoli-Roma, and the two shared a light-hearted moment afterwards. In the 57th minute at the Maradona, with Napoli leading 2-0, Politano took advantage of an error by Wesley to go one-on-one with Gollini and try to seal the match. Napoli's number 21, however, had not reckoned with the effective rush off his line by the Roma keeper, who closed down the angle. The two were team-mates at Napoli in the 2023-24 season, and the exchange showed that their friendship runs deeper than the 90 minutes. Roma were beaten 2-0 at the time of the incident, with Wesley's mistake proving costly in the build-up. According to DAZN, which published the clip on Instagram, Gollini approached his friend after the save and embraced him, almost as a consolation, before giving him a friendly nudge towards the centre of the pitch.

Roma host Cagliari at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday 27 October at 20:45 in the ninth round of Serie A, with Gian Piero Gasperini weighing up some changes after the 3-3 draw at Napoli's Maradona. Roma remain unbeaten in Serie A and sit third with 18 points from eight matches, having drawn their head-to-head clashes against Inter, Como and Napoli. Cagliari, coached by Fabio Pisacane, are ninth on 13 points and come into the game on the back of two consecutive defeats, against Monza and Bologna. Roma are looking to return immediately to winning ways to stay within touching distance of the top of the table. The trip to Naples was described as a costly one, and Gasperini is considering some rotation. Dybala is returning towards the matchday squad but is expected to start on the bench. Svilar, Koné and Pellegrini are ruled out. Gollini keeps his place in goal, while Ghilardi could get a chance in defence alongside N'Dicka and Balerdi. Cristante starts in midfield from the first minute alongside Pisilli. Lulli and Molina are favoured on the flanks, with Soulé and Rodrigo Mora expected to support Malen up front. For Cagliari, Pisacane must do without Winks, who is sidelined by lumbar pain, as well as Felici and Idrissi. Trepy returns to the matchday squad. Yerry Mina is set to return to the starting line-up in defence, while Sugawara and Zé Pedro compete for a place on the right. Gagliardini will take Winks' place in midfield, with Maldini and Adopo expected to play behind Mendy, although Kevin Carlos remains a possible option. The match will be broadcast exclusively on DAZN, available through the DAZN app on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets, consoles and computers. There will be no live broadcast on the traditional Sky Sport channels. Kick-off at the Stadio Olimpico is set for 20:45 on Tuesday 27 October. Bookmakers make Roma clear favourites. A Roma win is priced on average between 1.33 and 1.35, a draw around 4.90-5.00, and a Cagliari win between 8.25 and 9.60. The market also expects a game with at least three goals, with Over 2.5 favoured over Under, and No Goal offered at a slightly lower price than Goal. The 2-0 correct score to Roma carries the shortest odds at around 6.50, ahead of 1-0 and 2-1. ROMA (3-4-2-1): Gollini; Ghilardi, Ndicka, Balerdi; Lulli, Cristante, Pisilli, Molina; Soulé, Mora; Malen. Manager: Gasperini. CAGLIARI (4-3-2-1): Caprile; Sugawara, Mina, Rodriguez, Obert; Romano, Gagliardini, Deiola; Adopo, Maldini; Mendy. Manager: Pisacane. Referee: Ermanno Feliciani (Teramo). Assistants: Zingarelli and Fontani. Fourth official: Mariani. VAR: Ghersini. AVAR: Camplone.

Roma host Cagliari at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday in midweek Serie A action, with both sides looking to bounce back from disappointing weekend results. Roma came from two goals down to draw 3-3 with Napoli at the Maradona Stadium on Saturday, while Cagliari lost 2-0 at home to Bologna. Gian Piero Gasperini's side remain unbeaten in Serie A (W5, D3) and have avoided defeat in their first eight league matches of the season for the first time since 2013/14. However, a third draw in their last four league outings has left the Giallorossi four points behind joint leaders Inter and Lazio. Roma are vying for their first Scudetto since the beginning of the century and will be desperate to return to winning ways against a Cagliari side they have enjoyed plenty of success against at the Olimpico lately. Fabio Pisacane's team face a stern test. Cagliari have suffered nine defeats in their last 11 league visits to Rome (D2) and have not scored in any of their four away league meetings with Roma since 2022 (L4), including a 2-0 defeat in the corresponding fixture last season. Bologna's win condemned Cagliari to back-to-back league defeats for the first time since April, and the Sardinians have slipped to mid-table after a promising five-game start (W4, L1). They are winless in three consecutive league games (D1, L2), following a 4-0 defeat at Monza on their last Serie A trip. Their defence has also struggled: after conceding just twice in the opening five rounds, they have let in seven goals in their last three league outings. Cagliari last beat Roma at the Olimpico in February 2013. Roma have been strong at home, winning three of their four home league matches in 2026/27 (D1) and scoring at least two goals on each occasion. They have lost only one of their last 11 home games in all competitions (W8, D2), the exception being a 4-3 defeat to Real Madrid in this season's Champions League. The Giallorossi have won six of their last seven Tuesday Serie A fixtures (L1) and have netted two or more goals in eight consecutive home outings. That feat has been managed in three of their last five home clashes against Cagliari. Gasperini's attacking football has not come at the expense of defensive stability, as Roma have conceded just one first-half goal in Serie A this season and have opened the scoring in 63% of their league matches. Cagliari have been much more impressive away from home, with three wins from four league games on the road (L1), just one shy of the four road victories they recorded in the whole of the 2025/26 season. Maintaining that form would significantly boost their chances of a first top-half finish in Serie A since 2008/06. Bryan Cristante has returned from injury at a good time for Roma, giving the team a major midfield boost, as Gasperini cannot call upon Lorenzo Pellegrini or Manu Kone. First-choice goalkeeper Mile Svilar is also sidelined, but Paulo Dybala could make the bench on Tuesday. For Cagliari, long-term absentees Riyad Idrissi and Mattia Felici remain out. Harry Winks had to come off early against Bologna and is unlikely to start, with veteran Roberto Gagliardini expected to take his place in midfield. Roma (3-4-2-1): Gollini; Balerdi, Ndicka, Koulierakis; Lulli, De Roon, Cristante, Molina; Mora, Soule; Malen. Cagliari (4-3-2-1): Caprile; Ze Pedro, Mina, Rodriguez, Obert; Adopo, Gagliardini, Romano; Fadera, Maldini; Mendy. Roma are the favourites, with the preview predicting a Roma win.

Roma face Cagliari tomorrow, the first of a run of fixtures that should be relatively manageable, at least in Serie A. Gasperini is expected to rotate the side as he did against Genoa, though not too heavily. Ghilardi and Balerdi are likely to have at least one of them in defence, while Wesley could rest on the flank. Lulli is ready to return at right-back, with Molina or the Brazilian on the left. The real question mark is in the number ten role, where Rodrigo Mora could get another opportunity. If that happens, Cristante would drop back into midfield, probably alongside Pisilli, to give de Roon a breather. Up front, Soulé and Malen are confirmed in the starting line-up, while Dybala is likely to start from the bench. The match comes straight after the crazy 1-1 draw at Napoli, so the focus now turns quickly back to the pitch. Gasperini's approach, as shown against Genoa, is to rest key players without overdoing it. The fixtures that follow are seen as relatively accessible, at least in the league, which gives the coach room to balance fitness and form across the squad. The main selection debate centres on the attacking midfield, where Mora's form will be tested. Cristante's possible switch to midfield would also reshape the engine room, offering de Roon some rest while keeping a settled shape around Pisilli.