Greek defenders at Roma: from Dellas to Manolas, now Koulierakis

Roma travel to the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino on Monday 14 September at 18:30 for a Serie A fourth-round clash against Torino, managed by Ignazio Abate. The fixture comes four days after Roma's 1–1 draw against Fenerbahçe in the Champions League group phase. Roma arrive with three consecutive league wins—against Fiorentina, Lecce and Atalanta—while Torino claimed their first points of the campaign last time out with a 2–1 victory at Fiorentina, having previously lost to Milan and Sassuolo. Gasperini's squad have recovered key personnel for the trip. Manu Koné, Emanuele Lulli and Lorenzo Pellegrini are all available after injury concerns, with Koné having been assessed and cleared following a knee problem sustained in Istanbul. Koné's involvement from the start remains under review, with Niccolò Pisilli ready to partner Bryan Cristante in midfield if the manager opts to manage the load. Nahuel Molina is in contention for his first league start at right-back, while Wesley should continue on the left flank. In defence, Evan N'Dicka and Mario Hermoso appear set to flank Svilar, though Leonardo Balerdi is pushing Gianluca Mancini. Gasperini has ruled out resting Paulo Dybala on principle, stating the forward plays if he is fit; Donyell Malen is favoured over Santiago Castro up front, with Rodrigo Mora in line to return to the starting eleven. Torino face severe attacking difficulties. Kyogo Furuhashi Adams is effectively unavailable with an adductor injury and unlikely to return before the international break, while Giovanni Simeone's back problem leaves him doubtful for selection until the morning of the match. Manager Abate has indicated the possibility of fielding no conventional centre-forward, with Duvan Zapata, Kulenovic or an advanced Vlasic among the options. Coco's return to the back three alongside Comuzzo and Cömert provides relief in defence. The midfield is expected to mirror the setup used against Fiorentina: Gineitis, Fitz-Jim and Mandragora centrally with Vlasic positioned higher. Fortini, Cacciamani and Belghali are competing for the two wing slots. The match will be broadcast exclusively on DAZN across all platforms. Bookmakers rate Roma as clear favourites. Torino's victory stands at 5.80–6.00, a draw between 3.90 and 4.05, and a Roma win between 1.55 and 1.60. The uncertainty around Torino's attack has made both Goal and No Goal odds roughly level. The exact-score market identifies a 0–1 Roma win as the most likely outcome at 7.00–7.60 odds. Referee Fabio Maresca will oversee the fixture, with Gianluca Aureliano in the VAR booth.

Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen are set to start in Roma's match against Torino, with uncertainty centring on the attacking midfield role. Niccolò Pisilli may begin the game, though Rodrigo Mora is also in contention. Manu Koné has recovered from his previous issues and is available for selection. Gasperini continues to manage squad dynamics ahead of the fixture. The coach has dismissed talk of a strict hierarchy among his attacking players, insisting that Dybala is in good form and cannot be left out. He has also defended midfielder Marten de Roon against criticism, rejecting the suggestion that the player's form has deteriorated.

Roma travel to Torino for the fourth round of Serie A on 13 September, sitting joint top of the table alongside Inter after three consecutive wins in the opening three matchdays. The Giallorossi arrive in strong form following a comeback victory against Atalanta and a draw away to Fenerbahce in the Champions League. Paulo Dybala is available for selection, while Manu Koné is ruled out. Roma have built early-season momentum and will look to maintain their push at the summit as the campaign continues.

Gian Piero Gasperini held his pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow's visit to Torino, rejecting suggestions of a squad hierarchy. "Please stop talking about hierarchies, it's not fair to the players who are giving their all," he said. "It makes no sense for these players—they're all making an important contribution. Ghilardi is growing, there's Koulierakis." Emanuele Lulli will be available for selection after recovering from a virus intestinale (intestinal virus) that struck him in recent days; the 2007-born defender from Palestrina is expected to start. On Paulo Dybala's availability, Gasperini was blunt: "If he's well, he plays." The forward has been in excellent form and started in all four league matches so far this season. Lorenzo Pellegrini returns to the squad after his absence, a significant boost for Roma's midfield ahead of the trip to Turin.

Roma return to Serie A action tomorrow at 18:30 away to Torino, seeking to build on their opening Champions League draw. The Giallorossi drew 1–1 at Fenerbahce on their European debut and now face Ignazio Abate's Torino, who recently won a comeback victory over Fiorentina. A win at the Olimpico Grande Torino would leave Roma on maximum points after four matches, with a match against Inter scheduled five days later. Gian Piero Gasperini will address the press at 13:30 on Tuesday from Trigoria. Gasperini confirmed that Lorenzo Pellegrini is fit and available for selection. The squad list also includes Manu Koné, who completed a fitness test during the day, Wesley following a knee knock, and Emanuele Lulli after a bout of fever. In his pre-match conference, Gasperini spoke warmly of recent performances, particularly Donyell Malen's impact since arriving. On Rodrigo Mora's integration into the attack, Gasperini said: "I see what you all see—he is a talented, young player, and that is not considered. He must improve physically and tactically. What he has shown is a young player of talent and level. There is not a younger player who can be more of a protagonist at this moment." When asked whether defensive hierarchy could shift, Gasperini pushed back strongly: "Please stop with this hierarchy talk, it is not right towards these players. It makes no sense for them, it has no effect for the squad. Everyone is giving an important contribution. Balerdi did remarkable things at Marseille, we have to play a lot. A team in the Champions League does not work with hierarchies, but there are many starters who play without promoting one and rejecting another, otherwise it becomes something controversial." The full squad for Torino includes defenders Devyne Rensch, Konstantinos Koulierakis, Evan N'Dicka, Nahuel Molina, Mario Hermoso, Gianluca Mancini, Leonardo Balerdi, Wesley, Emanuele Lulli and Daniele Ghilardi; midfielders Bryan Cristante, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Marten de Roon, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli and Rodrigo Mora; forwards Santiago Castro, Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé and Paulo Dybala.

Gian Piero Gasperini has named his squad for Roma's away match against Torino, with two significant updates: Lorenzo Pellegrini returns for the first call of the season, and Manu Koné is available after recovering from a knee problem sustained against Fenerbahce. Pellegrini's inclusion marks his first involvement in the 2026-27 campaign. Koné had been sidelined by the injury but is now fit to feature. The squad encompasses the full depth of Gasperini's defence, midfield and attack options for the fixture. Gasperini's full squad list reads as follows: Goalkeepers: Svilar, De Marzi, Gollini. Defenders: Rensch, Koulierakis, N'Dicka, Molina, Hermoso, Mancini, Balerdi, Wesley, Lulli, Ghilardi. Midfielders: Cristante, Pellegrini, De Roon, Koné, Pisilli, Mora. Forwards: Castro, Malen, Soulé, Dybala.

Roma's radio stations weighed in on the club's Champions League campaign launch and squad decisions ahead of Thursday's fixture in Istanbul. Roberto Pruzzo told Radio Radio he saw no red flags in the project: "The sensation around Roma is absolutely positive, there seems to be only one path and they are following it. Everyone is behind the manager, and that feels like the most positive signal. There are technical qualities that let the coach make changes when necessary without negative impact. Right now I don't see any downsides. Until the break I expect Roma to physically surprise opponents—I think they've done targeted planning to go 200 kilometres per hour until the break." Staff changes dominated discussion of squad depth. Ilario Di Giovambattista reported that Nahuel Molina would play against Fenerbahce, while Lorenzo Pellegrini's first call-up would come at Torino. Paolo Marcacci anticipated "surgical changes" for Istanbul, potentially including Santiago Castro for Donyell Malen up front. Paolo Cosenza and Piero Torri both attacked the travel ban on Roma province residents, with Torri calling it "totally unconstitutional" and urging the club to take an official stand. "Why can't I go to Torino to watch Roma? What have I done wrong?" Torri asked. "If there is individual responsibility, the state must guarantee me freedom." Alessio Nardo questioned Gasperini's handling of Salah-Eddine, who has rejected all offers with only the Mexican market remaining open. "He's turned everything down and now he's just going to graze at Trigoria with no real ambition until January," Nardo said. "When Salah-Eddine isn't considered and is out of the project, and when Guerreiro—who played for Bayern Munich last season—is immediately discarded, it makes me think the left-back position is a priority for Gasperini. But he doesn't seem to have chased it aggressively on the market. Salah-Eddine played in a World Cup and African Cup of Nations. If Kostas Tsimikas was there last season, maybe he deserved a chance. Clearly Gasperini really hates him." Lorenzo Pes added that Gasperini had made no current reassessment: "He's stuck with the view he had a year ago. Salah-Eddine doesn't have the characteristics Gasperini wants in his wing-backs." Roma's opening Champions League fixture comes Thursday at 18:45 in Istanbul against Fenerbahce. David Rossi noted the absence of Aurélien Guendouzi and flagged environmental difficulty alongside technical challenge. Nando Orsi backed the title ambition, calling the league Roma's "indubitable objective" while viewing Napoli as in a particular moment and Inter focused on Champions League victory.

Roma closed the summer transfer window with a tactical anomaly on the flanks that Gasperini must now correct. The club welcomed Nahuel Molina, an international-level operator, and promoted Emanuele Lulli from the Primavera, but departed with three established wide players: Zeki Çelik despite a renewal near completion (he chose Juventus), Kostas Tsimikas at the end of his loan spell, and Angeliño on a permanent exit. From 1 September, Gasperini has four full-backs available—Wesley, Devyne Rensch, Molina and Lulli—with a critical shared characteristic: all four are naturally right-footed. In a system where wide players are fundamental, this represents a significant imbalance that demands correction. The left flank presents a particular problem. Wesley, who proved a credible option there last season when Angeliño suffered injuries and Tsimikas disappointed, operates from an inverted position—offering a diagonal cut inside toward attacking midfielders but sacrificing natural overlapping runs and first-time crosses. This inversion does suit the movement style of Donyell Malen, a forward more suited to fluid attacking play than penalty-box poaching. On the right last season, Çelik provided physical reliability; in the opening two league matches of the current campaign, Lulli has dominated the position. The 2007-born academy product is carving out his space with force, quality and intent, constraining Molina's deployment. The Argentine debutant, not yet at full fitness, entered Monday's match against Lecce at the hour mark when the contest was settled after 25 minutes, positioned on the left flank rather than his natural right, then shifted across later with Lulli moving to the opposite wing. Rensch, who remains unavailable, can operate on both flanks. Salah-Eddine, a genuine left-footer in the squad, has been excluded from the Champions League list and is outside Gasperini's project. During the three-month summer window, Roma pursued numerous full-back profiles—Fresneda, Cacciamani, Read, Moreira and Luiz Henrique among them—prompting discussion of Wesley returning to the right flank. None materialised, leaving the club with four naturally right-footed wide defenders. Gasperini's Atalanta tenure established the template for offensive wing-back football: over nine years in Bergamo, he consistently deployed pure left-footers on the left (Gosens, Ruggeri, Reca, Bakker) or right-footed players with exceptional weak-foot technique or cut-inside dribbling (Spinazzola, Mæhle, Castagne). Gosens and Ruggeri delivered eye-catching output: 12 goals and 8 assists in 2020-21 for the former; 2 goals and 6 assists in 2023-24 for the latter. The most concrete path forward at Roma appears to be Wesley's cut-inside dribbling combined with attacking-midfielder interplay. However, a move into the free-agent market remains possible: Guerreiro, returning after a decade between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, represents the ideal profile for the left flank, though explosive pace is not his hallmark. Diatta is also on the radar; he can fill all wide positions and could serve a dual-role function.

AS Roma faces UEFA review of its settlement agreement compliance after a summer transfer window costing approximately 125 million euros in purchases and 30 million in sales, with capital gains reaching only 25 million. The club will defend its position to UEFA at Nyon by highlighting a dramatic reduction in the wage bill—the primary evidence it claims of its sustainability strategy. Last season the payroll exceeded 133 million euros gross; it has now fallen to around 113 million, moving closer to the 100-million target. The wage cuts stem largely from player departures including Zaragoza, Çelik, Angeliño, Tsimikas, El Shaarawy and Dovbyk. The signing of Santiago Castro, a younger player with a lower salary spread across multiple years, exemplifies Roma's shift in strategy. Significant savings also came from the exits of El Aynaoui, Vaz, Ziółkowski and Kumbulla. Contract renewals for Dybala, Mancini, Cristante and Pellegrini followed the same model, reducing the fixed portion of salaries in favour of performance and appearance bonuses; these four extensions alone saved approximately 15 million euros. New arrivals Castro, Mora, Koulierakis, Molina, Balerdi and De Roon will cost around 25 million euros gross combined. Roma's overall wage reduction stands close to 45 million euros, reflecting the club's revised commercial approach as it attempts to satisfy UEFA's conditions set out in the 2022 settlement agreement.