Endrick's agent says the Brazilian wants to stay at Real Madrid but his future depends on playing time

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."

A column revisits the players Roma linked with last summer and how they have fared since, with the author noting that a winger Gasperini wanted is expected to arrive in January. The piece argues that some of those former targets are now tied down to new contracts and out of reach, making a return unlikely. Jamie Leweling was the most recent name to be discussed before he reportedly pulled back at the end of August, after a couple of weeks of uncertainty that affected his start to the season at Stuttgart, currently fourteenth. He has made only 2 starts in 6 Bundesliga matches, but has regained the trust of Sebastian Hoeness after the international break. In the Champions League he has started 2 of 3 games and scored in the last round at Atlético Madrid. His performances hover around the level of acceptable. Crysencio Summerville chose the Saudi route on 21 July, leaving Roma to sign for 17.3 million euros a season including bonuses. He had been one of Gasperini's favourites. He has 3 goals and 3 assists for Al Hilal in the Saudi league, and was sent off in his only appearance in the Champions League Elite. The author argues Middle Eastern football is not a good yardstick for judging players who choose money over the centre of the sporting world. Endrick has had a limited start to 2026-27. He came on in the last half hour against Roma for Real Madrid under Mourinho and started once, last weekend against Sevilla, before returning to the bench midweek in the Champions League. In total he has played 75 minutes in the league across 2 appearances and 35 minutes in Europe across 2 appearances. Mason Greenwood, rehabilitated at Marseille, has joined Fenerbahçe on a deal worth 11.5 million euros net, including bonuses. He has 4 goals and 2 assists in 8 Süper Lig games, and in the Champions League he scored 1 goal against Slavia Prague and set up 1 against Roma. The author says his quality is not in question, but his choice is. Malik Fofana, whose price was 35 million euros with wages of 3.5 million euros a season including bonuses, has yet to start for Sunderland and has no goals or assists in 120 minutes. The author judges the praise that surrounded him when Roma enquired to have been unjustified. Antonio Nusa is a regular starter at Leipzig, with 9 appearances of 80 minutes each, 6 of 6 in the Bundesliga with 3 goals and 3 assists, and 3 of 3 in the Champions League. The author finds it surprising that English and Spanish clubs have not invested, given the reported 55-60 million euro asking price, while noting he has been inconsistent, with 5 appearances of 12 minutes each. Alejandro Garnacho is struggling to regain form. Emery has described the physical gap with his teammates as still too wide. He has played 35 minutes in 3 Premier League matches and 33 minutes in 2 Champions League games. Gabriel Martinelli was offered to both Roma and Napoli in July and August at around 7 million euros a season plus bonuses. Both clubs considered him without committing. Al Hilal then offered 23 million euros a year. He has 5 goals in 5 league matches and 2 appearances in the Champions League Elite, and the author has no regrets about the figures involved.

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.