Messi's Argentina farewell creates scheduling headache for Gasperini ahead of Como clash

Mario Hermoso is close to signing a contract extension at Roma, with negotiations underway and head coach Gian Piero Gasperini pushing to finalise the agreement. According to La Repubblica, as reported by TeleRadioStereo, the deal would add two more years with an option. The centre-back's current contract expires at the end of the season. Hermoso has enjoyed a strong run in Rome, scoring 8 goals in 49 appearances for the club, three of them in the current campaign. Gasperini was influential in keeping him at the club in the first place. Hermoso joined as a free agent in 2024 after his time at Atlético Madrid, but he struggled to win regular minutes in his first few months. He was loaned to Bayer Leverkusen in January, and a shoulder injury prevented the German side from buying him outright, so he returned to Roma. Hermoso was reportedly on the chopping block in the summer of 2025, until Gasperini took a liking to him. The coach made him a linchpin of the side, as his skill set and dynamism suited his style well. The Real Madrid product also spent time at Espanyol earlier in his career and has five caps for Spain, although he has not been called up since 2019. Gasperini likes good ball handlers and sound athletes in every position, and especially in the 'braccetti' role. Hermoso's goalscoring is a bonus that has served the team well, as they can bring almost the whole side into the final third when they are firing. The extension is seen as a no-brainer, as the financial sums are not expected to be a problem.

Diego Tavano, agent of several players including Edoardo Bove, has spoken out about goalkeeper Slim Bouaskar, who has struggled to earn playing time with Roma this season, having made just two appearances for the Primavera side. Tavano spoke to journalist Eleonora Trotta. The goalkeeper, born in 2009, was included by The Guardian among the best emerging talents in world football, yet his season in Roma colours has so far failed to take off. Asked why Bouaskar is not finding the space everyone expected, Tavano said: "It's nice that so many people follow him and know him. They have certainly seen him also in the Tunisian national team, where he has worn the shirt of every age group. Now the call-up to the senior national team has also arrived. These are technical choices and we respect them. We have a year and a half left on his contract. It's a shame, because his path had been clean. He has always played in every championship. Last year, under age, he played in the Under-18s and helped the team of coach Scala achieve excellent results. We certainly expected that with Scala's promotion to the Primavera, there would be continuity. At the moment that is not the case, and we take note of it. The boy keeps training well and doing everything he has to do. Again, we have a year and a half left on the contract." Tavano acknowledged that a year and a half remaining on the deal is not a long time, yet several clubs are interested in the player. He said: "Certainly, also because The Guardian is one of the most important newspapers in Europe, but I don't think that is what makes the difference. I think that, if they are gathering information on him, it is above all because of what they have seen with Roma and with the national team. We start again from there. The contract is not long, but the opportunity to talk with Roma will not be missing. Again, I am certainly sorry, because today young players should have more space and there should be people with more courage. I always imagined him as a stable part of the first-team squad, and certainly playing in the Primavera." Asked whether Roma's recent situation had given the goalkeeper an important shop window, Tavano replied: "I have dealt with many goalkeepers, I have managed many of them. It is a rather particular role. At the moment, unfortunately, we are the anvil. We hope that one day we will be the hammer and that he can play for a important club. The dream is to play for Roma, since he grew up here."

Former Roma forward Antonio Cassano has heaped praise on Rodrigo Mora, comparing the Portuguese midfielder to the early version of Joao Felix from his Benfica days, before the forward moved to Atletico Madrid. Speaking on the programme Viva el Futbol, Cassano said: "He reminds me a lot of the first Joao Felix, the one from Benfica. A wonderful player, stratospheric, you see few like him now. Then Felix didn't deliver and dropped off, but at the start I liked him enormously." Cassano also turned his attention to Mora's game time, directing a question at head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. Cassano said: "I really like Mora, he still has to grow. I'd like to ask Gasperini: why does he play him sometimes and not others?" The former playmaker said he would like to see Mora featuring more consistently, while acknowledging that the player still has to complete his development. What stands out to Cassano is not only the player's technical qualities but also his attitude in training every day. He said he had received information from the Trigoria environment about the player's work ethic. Cassano said: "At Trigoria they tell me he is a great worker, a workaholic. Mora is devastating, one-on-one he always beats his man. If he doesn't get messed up, I think he can make people talk about him for the next 15-16 years."