Gasperini confident Roma will perform well despite incomplete squad; Oosterwolde deal nearing completion

AS Roma are already planning reinforcements ahead of the January transfer window, with head coach Gasperini keen to add a forward to strengthen the squad. The primary target remains Endrick of Real Madrid, the Brazilian who was in Roma's sights last summer and continues to struggle for minutes under Mourinho, having played only four minutes so far. Real Madrid are open to allowing him to leave, even on loan. Milan are also interested, but Aston Villa have emerged as serious contenders. According to Cadena SER, the Birmingham club have moved to the front of the queue and hold an advantage over both Italian sides. Endrick's lack of playing time at the Bernabéu has made him available for a potential move away from Spain.

Roma have renewed their interest in Issa Doumbia following his maiden start for Italy against Turkey on Sunday, which the Giallorossi won 3–1. The 22-year-old Sporting CP midfielder impressed Roma and Juventus during the match, according to Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur. Doumbia played the full 90 minutes and was involved in the build-up to Italy's first and third goals, a display that has brought fresh attention to a player Roma were already monitoring during the summer transfer window. Doumbia moved from Venezia to Sporting in June and signed a contract until 2031 with the Portuguese club. His agreement includes a €80 million release clause, officially confirmed by Sporting at the time of his transfer. That figure does not necessarily represent Sporting's asking price for any negotiation, but demonstrates the club's confidence in the player and the difficulty of engineering a move in the near term. For now, Roma's stance appears to be one of interest and observation rather than active pursuit. The midfielder's performance in the Stadio Olimpico victory gave him a significant platform at international level. His involvement in two of Italy's goals under Roberto Mancini underlined the quality that has drawn Roma's eye previously, and the display has intensified Italian clubs' focus on a prospect already known to the Giallorossi.

Maurizio Sarri, the current Atalanta manager and former Lazio head coach, addressed Marten De Roon's departure to Roma in an interview with Corriere di Bergamo. The transfer sparked controversy among Atalanta supporters, who displayed a banner during the Atalanta–Cagliari match reading: 'You chose to pass through our history but not to belong to it… Goodbye'. Gian Piero Gasperini defended De Roon in his press conference, saying: 'What was he supposed to do? The old shoe.' Sarri offered his own perspective on the midfielder's exit, stating: 'With me he never spoke; he dealt directly with the club.'

Lorenzo Pellegrini was among 13 figures from journalism, sport, television, entertainment and public life honoured at the twelfth edition of the Premio Giuseppe Colalucci at Rome's Circolo Antico Tiro a Volo on 7 October. The award, created by Guido D'Ubaldo (current president of the Lazio Press Association), commemorates Giuseppe Colalucci, the historic founder of *Il Tifone*. Also recognised were former Roma defender Ubaldo Righetti and Lazio manager Gennaro Gattuso. Pellegrini spoke of his contentment at remaining with Roma and the unity within the squad. During a national-team break, he had used the time to build fitness ahead of the return to domestic action. The Roma midfielder and the Lazio boss shared a relaxed moment together at the ceremony, exchanging embraces and conversation before the formalities began. At his presentation, Pellegrini said: "At Roma we are a united, strong group that works and knows what our objective is. I am happy to have stayed at Roma." Speaking to Sky Sport before the event, he added: "I am well; during this international break I have been able to push harder and recover. I am very pleased and very fired up for this restart."

Roma return to action on Sunday 11 October at 12:30 at the Sinigaglia for Serie A's sixth round against Como, following the international break. Wesley and Malen trained partially with the group on 7 October, while Bryan Cristante remains sidelined and will miss the match. Rodrigo Mora and Manu Koné have returned to Rome after completing their international commitments; Matías Soulé, Santiago Castro and Leonardo Balerdi are expected back tomorrow after finishing their respective obligations. Lorenzo Pellegrini is in contention for a starting role in the offensive line, having remained at Trigoria throughout the break and trained consistently under coach Gian Piero Gasperini. He is reportedly ahead of Soulé and Mora in the selection battle, a positioning helped by his uninterrupted preparation while his rivals were engaged with their national teams. Soulé will arrive in the capital only close to kickoff following Argentina's campaign, while Mora returned today after Portugal's Under-21 commitments. Michael Fabbri of Ravenna has been appointed to referee the match, with Imperiale and Baccini as assistants and Sozza as fourth official. Gariglio will manage the VAR with Abisso as AVAR. Fabbri has refereed Roma on 19 occasions: the club holds a record of 9 victories, 4 draws and 6 defeats under him. His last match involving Roma was in the 2025-26 season, when he officiated Roma's 1–0 defeat to Atalanta in Bergamo in round 18. Radio commentary before the match has focused on the title race. Stefano Carina remarked: "We need to understand what effect the Champions League has, it costs many points. But it is too early for any judgment, Como and Roma are already going at maximum, difficult they can do more." Paolo Marcacci added: "I have positive feelings about the match with Como. After this break another championship begins: between 13 and 10 points there are eight teams, so this round can become important for the table. If I had to pick a result, I would say Roma will win or at least not lose. But it is too early to say that whoever wins will become the anti-Inter."

Roma will travel to Como in four days with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini preparing his squad for the match. Bryan Cristante is unavailable through injury, while Donyell Malen and Wesley have trained separately but pose no fitness concerns. Rodrigo Mora and Manu Koné returned to Rome today following the international break, with Matías Soulé, Santiago Castro and Leonardo Balerdi due back tomorrow. Como's prospects have improved ahead of the fixture. Moise Kean is recovering from muscle fatigue that forced him to leave the national team camp, and confidence is growing that he will feature against Roma. Como's director of sport Ludi addressed the upcoming match, saying: "It will undoubtedly be a stimulating match, extremely difficult against one of the strongest teams in the championship. We want to test ourselves seriously to prove we are their rivals." Michael Fabbri has been appointed as referee. Como's last meeting with Roma came in January, a 1–0 defeat at Atalanta where Scalvini scored an irregular goal after committing a foul on Mile Svilar.

Como–Roma will feature a clash between Paulo Dybala and Nico Paz, two Argentine stars of Serie A. The match pits the experienced Dybala against the younger Paz in a contest that extends beyond the pitch itself, representing a generational encounter between the two playmakers.

Radio pundits across Rome's major stations offered contrasting views on Roma's immediate prospects and Serie A title race as Gian Piero Gasperini's side prepares for a difficult run of fixtures. The central debate centred on Roma's chances against Como in the coming days and their broader credentials this season, with several voices backing the team to succeed despite midfield concerns. Lorenzo Pes argued that Roma has the tools to win both the Como match and later the Real Madrid fixture, though he cautioned against rushing Lorenzo Pellegrini back too soon. "I don't really expect Pellegrini to start, even though the Como match calls more for a trequartista," Pes said. "But putting a player who hasn't played since mid-April into a match that will be very intense doesn't seem wise." Mario Corsi framed Gasperini's anxiety around injury prevention as evidence of the manager's belief in the squad's potential. "Gasperini has a terror of losing players to injury," Corsi explained, "because he is convinced that this Roma with all its full complement can do something frightening. The injury to Cristante is not a tragedy; the tragedies would be injuries to Malen, Dybala or Svilar." Other contributors highlighted the volatility of post-international-break football. Fabio Petruzzi noted that both Como and Roma had individual duels to determine the outcome: "Where is the mismatch? Perhaps the head, how you prepare psychologically. I see Gasperini calm. He is a pain in the neck, in the good sense of the term, but he transmits tranquility to me; he seems like someone who knows he has something important in his hands." Alessio Nardo recalled Roma's poor record returning from breaks, citing defeats to Torino (0–1 in September), Inter (0–1 in October) and a 5–2 loss at San Siro in March of the previous season. On the title race, Roberto Pruzzo held firm to the view that Inter held a structural advantage despite a compressed table. "Despite the league being very tight at the moment, I still think Inter has 10 points of advantage over the others, but then it must put those points together and that isn't easy." Nando Orsi disagreed sharply, countering that Roma had nearly closed the gap and positioning the two teams as the likeliest contenders for the championship, with Como as a dark horse.

Rafa Benítez has identified Roma and Como as the two teams best equipped to remain competitive with Serie A's defending champions this season. Writing for Gazzetta.it, the Spanish manager analysed the upcoming Como-Roma fixture and the wider title race, highlighting the challenges both clubs face after the international break. Benítez recognised Roma as the embodiment of Gian Piero Gasperini's tactical vision, praising the key players driving their campaign. He said: "Roma is the expression of Gasp, his all-field pressing, high re-aggression, immediate long balls; an attacker like Malen exalted by the schemes and devastating, Dybala who has returned to his levels; Koné in midfield who demolishes and pushes, Rodrigo Mora who comes in and breaks things. When they are playing well, you struggle to hold them." Benítez also commended Como's setup under Cesc Fabregas, describing him as "special for the way and timing in which he is establishing himself" and highlighting young talents including Nico Paz, Baturina, Ramon (21 years old), and Da Cunha. Benítez expressed concern about the difficulty of restarting the campaign after an unusually long international break. "It seems unusual, therefore hard," he explained. "The last time championships stopped for such a long period mid-season – and even longer than this – was during the Qatar World Cup, and that time it was even necessary to bring squads back into retreat with different preparations. Three weeks turn you upside down, everyone had their players scattered around the World and few were left to train. I foresee problems."

Roma's pursuit of Real Madrid forward Endrick remains at an impasse two months after a summer rejection, with the Spanish club offering neither discussion nor closure on a potential move. The international break has revived interest in the 20-year-old, who has made only four minutes of league action and no Champions League appearances under Carlo Ancelotti and remains keen to leave in search of regular playing time. Endrick has repeatedly told Real Madrid he wants to join Roma and wear the giallorosso, most recently reiterating this to José Mourinho before reporting to the Brazilian national team two weeks ago. Ancelotti has publicly acknowledged the forward needs consistent minutes to develop. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has not prioritised the signing, concentrating instead on upcoming fixtures rather than transfer activity—a perspective that makes sense given the January window lies three months away. Roma's primary target remains a winger with specific qualities: physically strong and capable of explosive pace. Endrick is not that profile, though Gasperini would accept him as a secondary option, potentially deploying him on the right wing or as a second striker. The first-choice targets remain Chelsea's Gittens, Stuttgart's Lewelling and Zenit's Luiz Henrique, all of whom were discussed in the closing stages of the summer market and remain on Roma's radar. Only Henrique received significant playing time after negotiations halted in August. Another barrier exists: the Friedkin family's likely demands for departures before any arrival. Soulé has been repeatedly pursued—both in summer and now through the winter window—while a possible move for defender Oosterwolde could mean Rensch or Ghilardi leaving. Oosterwolde was abandoned at the end of August due to physical problems, which are reportedly now resolved. For any Endrick deal to progress, Real Madrid must break its silence, the player must remain committed despite minimal minutes, and Roma must find clarity on squad-trimming priorities.

Roma could reopen talks with Jayden Oosterwolde during the winter transfer window after a summer move collapsed over medical concerns. The club had scheduled the defender's medical examinations before completing the deal, but assessments revealed a significant muscle tear that required surgery and an estimated three-month recovery. Roma chose not to proceed at that point, but have kept the 2001-born left-back on their radar. Director of sport Massimo D'Amico continues to monitor Oosterwolde's progress, and head coach Gian Piero Gasperini had already approved the move when it was being considered in summer, signalling how highly the former Parma player was valued for the project. The failed summer operation has not damaged relations between the parties. Roma will reassess Oosterwolde once he returns to full fitness and provides sufficient physical guarantees, with the January window offering a chance to revive negotiations that seemed all but done before the injury setback. A recent sign of sustained interest came during Roma's Champions League fixture against Istanbul, when Oosterwolde greeted several Roma players and subsequently held talks with Gasperini and his staff. Much will depend on the Dutch defender's recovery and Roma's own evaluation, but he remains a profile to watch for the giallorossi's left flank.

Roma's interest in Jayden Oosterwolde has not ended despite the dramatic collapse of negotiations last summer. The Dutch player arrived in the capital for medical examinations, but concerns emerged over his muscle injury during those tests. In early September, he underwent surgery with a recovery period estimated at around three months. Director Tony D'Amico and head coach Gian Piero Gasperini have kept Oosterwolde on their radar, with January potentially offering a second opportunity to complete the deal. Gasperini had already approved the move in summer, and both he and D'Amico continue to monitor the player's rehabilitation. The club has not crossed Oosterwolde off their list and remain interested in the former Parma player once he returns to full fitness. A recent encounter in Istanbul before Roma's match against Fenerbahçe showed the relationship remains intact: Oosterwolde greeted several Roma players and met with Gasperini, the medical staff and the fitness team. Roma are watching the progress of his recovery without urgency but without having closed the door either. If his physical condition provides adequate assurances, January could bring Oosterwolde back to the centre of Roma's transfer activity. The summer halt to negotiations need not mark the end of the story.