Gasperini sets transfer blueprint: Roma need four signings to compete in Champions League

Roma are reportedly showing renewed interest in Galatasaray midfielder Gabriel Sara, according to the German outlet fussball-news.de, as head coach Gian Piero Gasperini looks to strengthen the midfield when the January window opens. The report says Gasperini expects to add a midfielder, particularly after the serious injury suffered by Lorenzo Pellegrini. The Brazilian, born in 1999, plays for Galatasaray and has attracted the attention of several clubs. Roma had already sought him a couple of years ago. Napoli are also interested in Italy, while in the Premier League Newcastle and Everton have already expressed interest and are ready to offer around 30 million euros to secure his services. The report places the midfielder among the names under consideration as Roma look to reinforce the department, with the focus falling on a player who could fill the gap left by Pellegrini's absence.

Roma are reportedly monitoring midfielder Gabriel Sara, who was tracked for several weeks in summer 2024 and could be back on the club's radar. The Turkish-based player is finding limited game time and is reportedly keen to make the step up to Serie A. The interest is part of a wider search to add options for Gian Piero Gasperini, particularly after recent physical problems for Bryan Cristante and Manu Koné. Reports from Germany say Roma face strong competition. Napoli have also reportedly shown interest, while Newcastle and Everton from the Premier League are said to be ready to offer around €30 million. For now, the interest is at the market-sounding stage, with no advanced negotiations between clubs.

Former Milan and Fiorentina coach Stefano Pioli has revealed that Roma contacted him during September 2024, when the Giallorossi were searching for a replacement for Daniele De Rossi. Speaking on Sky Calcio Club, Pioli said he was approached by the Roman club but had already given his word to Al-Nassr. The approach came as Roma looked for a successor to De Rossi, who had been dismissed as head coach after four matches in 2025. Pioli's comments shed light on the club's search at that time, although he was already committed elsewhere when Roma made their move. Pioli said: "There were moments when everyone called me. Roma too, but the Al-Nassr contract had just arrived and I could not fail to respect the word I had given."

Nine months after their last visit to Udine, Roma are a different side: authoritative, overwhelming and capable of playing at relentless tempo with an intensity that eventually overwhelms their opponents. Much of the transformation comes from the work done on the training ground, even though the squad, enriched in quality, is still missing a couple of key pieces. Gian Piero Gasperini has managed to deepen the squad over recent weeks, shaping and developing several players despite a run of injuries to Svilar, Koné, Cristante, Dybala and Pellegrini that would have halted any club in Serie A. Today, anyone who takes the pitch, writes Stefano Carina in Il Messaggero, does not leave fans longing for those on the bench. From Lulli to Ghilardi, passing through Mora, Rensch, Castro and Balerdi, each player who gets his chance is able to take a leading role in turn. The acceleration has come without Dybala, who was the team's guiding light before a calf problem sidelined him. That setback has allowed Soulé to shine again. Soulé is a paradox in himself. Over the summer, every effort was made to sell him. Today, alongside the "monster" Malen, who has scored 22 goals in 2026, the most of any striker in Europe this year, ahead of Yamal, Mbappé, Haaland, Raphinha and Ballon d'Or winner Kane, he is the extra man, the player capable of carrying the team on his shoulders. A leader, something he was long accused of not being. Another piece of Gasperini magic.

Gian Piero Gasperini's Roma have set a club record of 28 goals after their first 10 Serie A matches, and the coach's influence is being felt in more than the table. Roma have also gone 17 league games unbeaten, a run that began seven months ago, and have scored with 14 different players. The article credits Gasperini's method, which has made a difference since last season, with improving both the collective behaviour of the team and the development of individual players, young and experienced alike. The clearest evidence of that work, the article argues, comes when Roma are under pressure. Several key players have been missing for weeks: Svilar, Koné and Dybala are all regular starters, and Pellegrini is also absent. Cristante has returned after three matches out and was a major presence at Udine. Despite the lack of players of real quality, Gasperini has kept his idea of football intact, and the team has not lost the identity that marks every match he prepares. At Udine, Gasperini made changes during the game to keep his 3-4-2-1 system without abandoning it. In the closing stages he pushed Ghilardi wide on the right, asking him to finish the match against Udinese as a winger, and moved Molina up into the attacking midfield role behind Castro and in line with Pisilli. Mancini came on for Soulé, taking Ghilardi's place in defence, and Ghilardi's move into midfield pushed Molina further forward. The attack was therefore reshaped from the starting line-up, which had Malen alongside Soulé and Mora. The second-half moves also raise the question of January reinforcements. Given the seriousness of Pellegrini's injury, added to the absence of the out-and-out striker who did not arrive in the summer, the article says Roma would benefit from two more attacking midfielders to give greater choice up front. Pisilli and Molina, a midfielder and a wide player, ended up in those positions at Udine. Gasperini is therefore expected to wait for two signings at the start of 2027. In the meantime, the article notes he has been creative in dealing with the emergency, as he did last year when he dropped Cristante into defence, and in pre-season he played Hermoso in midfield.

Roma have gone five matches without Manu Koné and Paulo Dybala and have collected 13 points in that stretch, a record that shows the squad's depth under Gasperini. Bryan Cristante was also briefly absent, and the club have coped with the losses of several key players. The article notes that Pisilli, de Roon, Rodrigo Mora, Pellegrini and Castro started on the bench at times against the most reliable opponents, which it describes as a fact that applies to every team in the world. Gasperini has insisted that "they are all starters". Even with several important names unavailable, Roma have kept their level high. Koné and Dybala are described as perhaps the two best players in the squad alongside Svilar and Malen. Last season, the French and Argentine midfielder and forward were both missing together in 9 matches across Serie A and the Europa League, and Roma collected 13 points from 3 wins, 4 draws and 2 defeats. As of Sunday 1 November, the five matches without the pair have yielded 13 points against Genoa, Napoli, Cagliari, Udinese and Slovan Bratislava. That is an average of 2.6 points per game, compared with 1.44 in the earlier spell. Cristante was also out in two of those five games. Svilar has missed seven matches, and his injury marks the last time Roma fielded their full first-choice side, on 19 September, a 2-2 draw with Inter. The article credits the squad's improved maturity and quality, partly due to the summer work of D'Amico. It describes Pisilli as having a year more experience, de Roon as a professor with a titanium physique, and Soulé as back at top level. Rodrigo Mora is raising his standard, Gollini has regained confidence in his role after a long spell without playing, Lulli is a "terrible" young talent, and Balerdi often looks like a gladiator. The overall level of the team has risen considerably. After the international break, Gasperini is expected to have all his players available for the trip to Parma.

Roma's goal-scoring machine rolled on with a five-goal haul at Udine, and the win piled pressure on defending champions Inter, who are no longer top of Serie A after Lazio's unstoppable run. Roma have now scored 28 league goals in their first ten matchdays, a new Serie A record, surpassing the 26 scored in 1960-61 and 2016-17. Across all competitions, the club have netted 36 goals in 13 matches, an average of three every ninety minutes. The figures put the team on course for around 100 goals this season. What stands out most is not just the total but the spread of scorers: fourteen different players have found the net out of the twenty available to Gian Piero Gasperini. Donyell Malen remains the sure thing up front, but the rest of the squad are eager to get involved. In Udine, two defenders joined the list. Evan N'Dicka scored at the stadium where, in April 2024, he suffered a serious scare after a collapse. Daniele Ghilardi scored for the first time in Serie A and in a Roma shirt, a reward for a season in which he has become increasingly central to Gasperini's plans. Only Paulo Dybala, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Wesley, Devyne Rensch, Gianluca Mancini and Konstantinos Koulierakis are yet to score this season.

Roma defender Konstantinos Koulierakis has opened up about his early career in Greece in an interview with Greek public broadcaster ERT on the programme Kalimera ipame?, and he has left the door open to a return to PAOK one day. The Greek centre-back, who is gradually carving out a place in Gian Piero Gasperini's squad during a particularly demanding period for Roma, described how he joined the PAOK academy. Koulierakis recalled that his trip to Thessaloniki had been cancelled several times before he finally made it. Joining the PAOK academy had been a dream, and he said he was overjoyed on hearing the news, although naturally also nervous. He was kept on from the third day, without having to complete a full week of trials. "Maybe they wouldn't have kept me if I had arrived earlier," he said. He moved to Thessaloniki alone, living for three years in the PAOK accommodation. His parents had been offered the chance to follow him, but he never asked them to come. "I wanted to face this experience on my own. From the moment I entered the academy, my goal was to reach the first team, and to make it. That's why I never thought I missed my parents. I was very aware of what I wanted." He trained with the first team at first, then took part in the pre-season preparation, and from there he broke into the senior side, where he also played. He spent two years in the first team before Wolfsburg came in, and he is now at Roma. "I had completed two full seasons at PAOK, a big club where there is pressure. We won the league, lost finals, I felt fulfilled and ready for the next step." Asked whether he would ever return to play in Greece, Koulierakis was clear about his preference. "Obviously I would like to play for PAOK. As a player you never know what the future holds, but certainly at PAOK, because I lived very beautiful moments there and PAOK made me grow. It showed me the way to become a professional."

Roma routed Udinese at the Bluenergy Stadium with an authoritative performance that left Runjaic's side well beaten, and the Italian sports dailies rewarded almost the entire squad with high marks. Molina was the exception, rated among the least impressive players on the Friulian side. In the ratings from Corriere dello Sport, Cristante earned an 8, the highest mark on the Roma side, while Ghilardi and N'Dicka both received 7.5. Mora and Soulé were also given 7.5, and Malen 7.5, with Gasperini awarded 7.5 as coach. Il Messaggero, Corriere della Sera, La Repubblica and Tuttosport all also gave Cristante an 8 or 7.5 and Ghilardi and N'Dicka solid marks of 6.5 to 7, with Mora and Malen praised in several papers. Molina was marked 6 by most dailies, and 6.5 by La Repubblica, while Wesley's ratings ranged from 6 to 7. Gasperini received 7.5 from most papers, and 7 from Tuttosport. Gollini, Hermoso and De Roon were rated more moderately, with Gollini getting a 6 across the board. Substitutes were also assessed. Pisilli came on for Mora and was given 6.5 by Corriere dello Sport and 6 by the other papers, while Castro was rated 6.5 or 6 after replacing Malen. Mancini's cameo earned a 6 from Il Messaggero and Tuttosport, and Koulierakis and Rensch were left unrated.

Roma's loan contingent produced mixed results across European and domestic competitions this week, with midfielder Luigi Cherubini and midfielder Neil El Aynaoui delivering attacking contributions while others awaited their chance. Cherubini, on loan at Benevento with a right of option and obligation to buy, scored in the 93rd minute of Benevento's 2–0 win over Cesena. Introduced from the bench in the 79th minute, the 2004-born winger capitalized on a defensive error by Ilic, rounded the goalkeeper and finished to seal victory. He was booked in the 81st minute and initially had a goal ruled out for offside before his late winner. The performance earned him a rating of 7 from BeneventoNews24 and PianetaSerieB as Benevento secured a third consecutive victory. El Aynaoui, a midfielder on loan at RB Lipsia with a right of rescission, provided the assist for Banzuzi's opening goal after just one minute in a 6–0 Bundesliga demolition of Eintracht Frankfurt. Deployed in the starting lineup by Demichelis, El Aynaoui contributed to a dominant first half that saw Lipsia lead 4–0 at the interval, including a hat-trick from Nkunku. He was booked in the 27th minute and substituted in the 58th when the scoreline already stood at 5–0. Elsewhere, defender Filippo Reale (Carrarese, on loan with option and counter-option) played the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 away win over Padova, maintaining a clean sheet. Young defender Mohamed Seck (Foggia, on loan) completed all 90 minutes in a 3–1 home defeat to Potenza and received a rating of 5, criticized for poor positioning during the opposition's counter-attacks. Forward Artem Dovbyk (Bologna, on loan with right of rescission) returned to the squad after a muscular injury to his flexors but remained unused on the bench in Bologna's 2–1 away win at Lecce. Forward Robinio Vaz (Hull City) was named in the squad for a 2–2 Premier League draw against Everton but played no part, remaining on the bench for the full 90 minutes.

Roma's players on loan across Europe experienced a mixed week of midweek and league fixtures. Neil El Aynaoui performed well for RB Leipzig despite a 2–0 home defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, completing 31 of 34 passes and winning 8 of 14 duels while receiving a yellow card in the 74th minute. His statistical rating reached 7.2, among Leipzig's best performances. Anass Salah-Eddine made a convincing debut for Panathinaikos in a Greek Cup tie against Kifisia, playing all 90 minutes on the left flank in a 2–0 victory. FotMob rated him 7.3 for a clean display as Panathinaikos dominated with 71 per cent possession in the first half. By contrast, Angeliño's week at Deportivo La Coruña ended disastrously: he was sent off for a challenge on Miguel Sierra in the 59th minute of a midweek fixture against Sevilla—initially given a yellow card before the VAR review led to a direct red—leaving his side to lose 1–0 already down in the scoreline. Statistical ratings gave him just 5.7, and Deportivo manager Hidalgo noted how the expulsion undermined the team's comeback effort. Angeliño subsequently missed the following 1–1 draw against Betis through suspension. Mohamed Seck at Foggia produced sharply contrasting displays within days. Playing 90 minutes in a goalless midweek draw against Savoia, he was identified as Foggia's best performer, winning nearly every duel against opposing attackers. Coach Auteri retained him for the next match against Inter U23, but this time his form dipped noticeably. Foggia lost 2–1, and a careless passing error by Seck enabled the decisive goal from Fumagalli. Foggiacalciomania rated him 5.5, noting good physical condition but a costly mistake. The week illustrated the growth trajectory of a defender aged just 20, with evident talent and physicality that must be coupled with fewer lapses in concentration. Elsewhere, Federico Nardin at Pescara played the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 midweek draw against Gubbio, earning ratings of 6 and 6.9 for personality and reliability despite some refinements needed, but sat out the subsequent 1–0 win at Vado. Filippo Reale completed 90 minutes for Carrarese in a 1–0 home defeat to Benevento, earning 6 and 6.7 ratings for an orderly display, while Luigi Cherubini entered at the 77th minute for Benevento and struck the post with a close chance in the 83rd. Radoslaw Zelezny, Perugia's goalkeeper, conceded five goals across two matches but received ratings of 6 in both a 3–0 home loss to Spezia and a 2–0 away defeat at Grosseto, with no clear responsibility on most goals. Robinio Vaz at Hull City entered off the bench in the 78th minute during a 2–1 loss at Newcastle after more than ten minutes without notable incident, marking his second consecutive Premier League appearance. Marash Kumbulla remained unused at Rayo Vallecano despite being named in squads for a 2–1 win against Espanyol and a 1–1 draw at Osasuna. Jan Ziolkowski has not returned to action for Monza, continuing recovery from plantar fasciitis. Artem Dovbyk spent another week without playing time at Bologna.

Angeliño, loaned to Deportivo La Coruña this summer with a buy option, made his first start in a year in the sixth matchday of Liga between Deportivo and Seville on 17 September 2026. The move brought no luck. After sitting on the bench for the opening four rounds, Angeliño was fielded in the starting XI but lasted only until the 60th minute, when he was sent off for a hard challenge on Miguel Sierra. The referee initially showed yellow but upgraded it to red after consulting the VAR. The dismissal came at the worst moment for Deportivo, who were already trailing 0–1 following Sierra's goal in the 52nd minute. Seville held on to win 0–1, leaving Angeliño's long-awaited return to competitive action marked by a straight red card.