Pellegrini contract talks stall over length and wages

Roma's players largely avoided the Trigoria training ground after their opening Serie A victory over Fiorentina at the Olimpico, leaving supporters gathered at the facility's gates disappointed. The team coach arrived practically empty, as the vast majority of Gian Piero Gasperini's squad chose to travel directly home from the stadium immediately after the final whistle rather than return to the center as fans had hoped to greet them. Jan Ziolkowski stood out as the sole exception. The young Polish defender was the only squad member present at the training ground—a detail of significance given his uncertain future at the club. The 2005-born defender remains at the centre of transfer speculation, with Saudi club Neom reportedly ready to make a move with an offer worth approximately €20 million to take him from Roma. The scene highlighted the contrasting priorities between the playing staff and the supporters who had gathered outside the Bernardini gates following the opening day success.

Roma have completed the signing of Oosterwolde on a paid loan with an option to buy. The deal is structured at €16 million plus €2 million in add-ons. The player is due to land tomorrow morning at 11:35.

Jayden Oosterwolde is arriving at Roma from Fenerbahçe. The Dutch defender is due in the capital tomorrow morning, 25 August, with his arrival scheduled for 11:35 at Ciampino airport. The 2001-born player can operate as a centre-back, as a defensive midfielder, or on the wing, providing tactical flexibility for head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. Oosterwolde represents another defensive reinforcement following the arrival of Konstantinos Koulierakis, with Jan Ziółkowski's future at the club still uncertain. However, Oosterwolde is currently managing a muscular issue that will keep him sidelined for another two weeks. Before heading to Amsterdam earlier on 24 August, he released a statement in which he admitted that he did not want to leave Fenerbahçe.

Gian Piero Gasperini praised Roma's mentality and attacking prowess after a 4-0 victory over Fiorentina on 24 August, singling out Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen as world-class talent and calling for further recruitment to strengthen the squad for a demanding fixture schedule. Speaking to DAZN, Gasperini said: "The mentality of this group. These boys have recommenced as it was last season. We carry more knowledge. Their attitude in the match and in training is extraordinary. There are players who have done everything to play at Roma or remain: Dybala, Pellegrini, also Mora with his agent. They feel the beauty of this environment." Gasperini highlighted Dybala's physical condition at 32 years old as crucial to the club's ambitions. "Absolutely yes. He is a boy who at 32 is in the fullness of maturity. He may have less speed, but not much, and less force in the shot. He is among the very first in our league, if not the first." He noted that Dybala suffered misfortune last season with injuries from a penalty kick and a free kick that cost him a meniscus, but has made an "absolute level" preparation and is now more resilient. Gasperini withdrew him during the match because other important players were available, "but he can play even extra time." On the Dybala-Malen partnership, Gasperini declared: "They are of European level, therefore World level. Dybala has always been so, he only had too many injuries. This one is a beast: anything but silk muscles as someone said. He can even play extra time. Malen is extraordinary, but it is not by chance: he feels appreciated and strong, he is a leader on the pitch and can grow further still." Gasperini stressed that Roma's recruitment remains incomplete despite the convincing display. "We are not done. If you look at the calendar after the international break there is something to shudder at. It is absolutely necessary to have some numbers more, not too many, to face the season with the league, Champions League and Coppa Italia. With this risk we know there is the risk of losing players in the same period." He praised recent arrivals Konstantinos Koulierakis, Nahuel Molina, Santiago Castro, and Rodrigo Mora for fitting into the team's structure, noting that the group has a foundation built over the past year and new arrivals are functional. He also commended the new Serie A rule extending effective playing time, saying: "Beautiful, fantastic. I like it very much. The public is advantaged this way: before it saw matches of deadly boredom, with the goalkeeper touching more balls than everyone else. These are excellent rules: no one now stays on the ground more. They were thought out very well, the public wants to see play and not waste time."

Donyell Malen and Paulo Dybala spoke to DAZN after Roma's latest fixture, with the pair highlighting their early understanding on the pitch. In seven matches together, Malen has scored six goals and Dybala has provided six assists. When asked about reports that Gasperini said he returned sad from the World Cup, Malen responded: "I'm happy to be back, what's done is done. Now we've started again and I felt the energy of the stadium." Asked about matching his tally of 14 goals in half a season last year, Malen said: "I don't want to give numbers. I have to create goal-scoring chances, then we'll see." Dybala offered effusive praise for his young teammate. "We're facing an extraordinary talent," Dybala told DAZN. "At 19 he's already completed two campaigns, winning as well. Two years ago he scored 10 goals. He's a boy in evolution, also in the personality with which he played tonight. He's had a bit of physical decline too, which is normal. Every time he touches the ball something beautiful happens. He's resilient, he has elite athletic values. He can play on the right and left. He has football, real talent. There's work to do with him too, clearly—it's been a week he's been here. He'll give us great satisfaction." On the group's mentality, Dybala said: "The attitude of these boys is extraordinary. They've started again as they did last season. We carry more knowledge with us. Their attitude in matches and training is extraordinary. There are players who've done everything to play for Roma or stay: Dybala, Pellegrini, also Mora with his agent. They feel the beauty of this environment." Gasperini stressed Dybala's physical condition is key, noting: "At 32 he's in the fullness of maturity. He may have less speed, not much, and less shooting power. He's among the very first in our league, if not the first. Last year he was very unlucky. He had an injury kicking a penalty and one on a free kick. It cost him a meniscus, the penalty. But he's done absolute-level preparation. He's not made of silk, he's increasingly resilient. I took him off because we have other important players but he can play extra time too." Gasperini acknowledged Roma's squad remains incomplete despite the strong performance. "We've put the right players in the right places this year, like Koulierakis and Molina, who has an important past, Castro, Mora. But we haven't completed," he said. "If you look at the calendar after the international break there's reason to shiver. It's absolutely necessary to have some additional numbers, not too many, to face the season with the league, Champions and Coppa Italia. Knowing this risk, we know there's the risk of losing players in the same period."

Gian Piero Gasperini praised Roma's performance in their opening Serie A fixture against Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico, singling out Rodrigo Mora and Paulo Dybala as central to the club's ambitions. On Mora, the 19-year-old who has already completed two league seasons and scored ten goals two years ago, Gasperini said: "We are faced with an extraordinary talent. Even with a slight physical dip, which is normal, every time he touches the ball something beautiful happens. He is resilient, has athletic values of a high level. He can play on the right and left. He has football, real talent. There is work to do with him too, of course—he has been here for a week. He will give us great satisfaction." The coach credited the group's mentality as the match's most pleasing aspect, emphasizing that players including Dybala and Lorenzo Pellegrini had made clear efforts to join or remain at Roma. On Dybala's role, Gasperini was emphatic: "Absolutely yes, he is the key to aiming high." At 32 years old, Dybala is "in the fullness of maturity," according to Gasperini, who noted that while the Argentine may have lost some speed and shooting power, "he is among the very best in our league, if not the best." Last season proved cruel: Dybala suffered meniscus damage from a penalty kick and a separate injury from a free kick, but his pre-season preparation has been exceptional. "He doesn't have silk muscles; he is ever more resilient," Gasperini said. "I substituted him because we have other important players, but he can play even extra time." Gasperini outlined his wider perspective on the squad's readiness. "The dimension of ourselves I am very happy with; this is an extraordinary group that finds motivation and quality too. The base is that—quality has come in, and now we start further ahead because we know each other better. The new arrivals are functional, which is very important," he explained. On deploying Mora immediately, Gasperini noted Roma's advantage from having accumulated a full season of matches, allowing them to play in multiple formations. Regarding Manu Koné's performance, Gasperini acknowledged pushing the midfielder: "He made it to the end of the World Cup, and there is a disparity in condition between those who played the World Cup and those who didn't. Tonight he went beyond and was in lactic acid at the end—he needs to train and regain fitness." Donyell Malen also drew praise, with Gasperini describing him as "extraordinary" and noting that the winger has found the right environment at Roma where he feels strong and appreciated. On his squad's Champions League calibre, Gasperini stressed that finding the right setting matters: "Probably he has found the right environment," he said of Malen. The manager expressed satisfaction with the squad's collective progress and the functionality of new arrivals as Roma look to build on their opening-day result.

Gian Piero Gasperini arrived at Roma in June with ambitions to sign elite attacking talent such as Mason Greenwood, Luis Summerville or Alexander Nusa, but faces the close of the transfer window having settled for younger, more sustainable prospects. Oosterwolde is expected to arrive in the coming days as one of two final signings, but the manager's publicly measured tone masks deeper disappointment at what proved achievable against his original vision for the squad. The shift reflects the club's financial constraints under UEFA's settlement agreement with Roma. The constraint has not only limited inbound spending but appears to have narrowly governed outbound movement as well. On 21 July, Roma sent a private aircraft to Rotterdam to pursue Summerville, whose transfer would have cost €53 million in fees plus €4 million in annual wages including bonuses. When that move collapsed, Gasperini suggested the dynamics altered: "Perhaps if we had done Summerville we couldn't have done anything else. Or perhaps his contract was sustainable at that moment." The comment hints that Roma's operational budget suddenly contracted mid-window, forcing a change in strategy communicated by ownership during a meeting at a location in Wales. The timing and scale of other moves support this reading. After Al Hilal's counter-offer prompted Roma to act quickly, the club signed Castro (€36 million plus €3 million add-ons), Koulierakis (€16.5 million plus €1.5 million) and Molina (€13 million plus €4 million—an unplanned expense given the earlier expectation Çelik would remain). A club source indicated that "Roma has already had two payment deferrals with UEFA and cannot have more. Now comes the reckoning." The new stance, communicated as ownership's direction, prioritizes younger profiles over established names, regardless of sporting ambition. Gasperini blamed the Financial Fair Play framework: "It is limiting; perhaps Roma is the only club in Italy that must pay this price." The tension between what he sought and what the transfer market delivered will shape his approach to the new season.

Roma's transfer window has been solid on paper, but a sense of incompleteness lingers as the 2026–27 season approaches. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini harboured genuine title ambitions and believed the club could break free from the trophy drought that has gripped Roma since 2001 with a pair of elite signings. Names such as Greenwood, Summerville, Nusa and Fofana circulated—not transcendental acquisitions, but players who could have offered greater guarantees to a squad that has failed to close the gap with Inter and Napoli. Instead, Roma finds itself lumped among Como, Milan, Juventus and Atalanta in what the article describes as "the usual free-for-all". While the squad is objectively stronger than it was a year ago—with changes such as Castro for Dovbyk, Molina for Çelik, and Mora for Bailey—no blockbuster arrival materialised. Gasperini has acknowledged both D'Amico's serious work and the communication difficulties with the Friedkin Group ownership. Roma avoided selling major players, a point in its favour, yet failed to offload the figures whose departures might have unlocked genuine transformation. The question of whether that constitutes merit or fault remains open. Even the most optimistic voices cannot claim Roma is positioned as Inter's antidote this season, nor can anyone expect the kind of transfer signing that would have forced police deployment at Rome's airports. Gasperini is acutely aware the squad does not possess title credentials—arguably not even Champions League credentials, despite finishing third last season on a photo-finish. The breakthrough he sought was meant to unlock funds throttled by UEFA agreement complications that have clouded recent years. Instead, "the reckoning" will arrive in the coming months, after which title dreams may finally take root. Much will depend on Paulo Dybala's form, the promises of Mora and the consistency of Donyell Malen. Ten days remain before the season begins, and that nagging sense of "I would but I cannot" has not yet lifted.

Gian Piero Gasperini defended Roma's transfer approach at his pre-match press conference on 22 August, two days before the Serie A opener against Fiorentina at the Olimpico. The coach confirmed that UEFA financial regulations have forced a strategic shift in the market, compounding constraints that stem from years of previous spending. "The profile is only that of UEFA; there are no other possibilities," Gasperini said. "There are situations that UEFA imposes and from which our ownership, even wanting to, cannot escape. I thought that after six months or with arrival in the Champions League the situation would be resolved, but it is not so." Gasperini emphasised that Roma remain the only Italian club currently under UEFA supervision. "Roma has already had two deferrals and probably cannot have any more," he noted. "Now the reckoning has arrived, but we will do well anyway." Despite those constraints, he expressed satisfaction with arrivals in the window. Álex Molina replaced Zeki Çelik after winning the World Cup two months earlier; Christos Koulierakis joined as a defensive profile the squad lacked; and Rodrigo Mora arrived as a young long-term investment. Artem Dovbyk and Evan Ferguson departed, replaced by Mateo Castro. El Shaarawy, Bryan Zaragoza, Angeliño and Kostas Tsimikas also left. Gasperini stated: "All the players who arrived have strongly wanted to come to Roma. They have also reduced their salaries—and under this aspect I believe very positive work has been done. There are still ten days of the market left and we hope to complete everything." On the left wing position that Roma had pursued, Gasperini offered flexibility: "Only if he can be added value, otherwise I am not going to load myself with players just for the sake of it." Numerically, two squad slots remain available from a full complement of 23. He praised Paulo Dybala, Lorenzo Pellegrini and Bryan Cristante for accepting significant wage cuts. On Dybala's fitness prospects, Gasperini said: "I am certain, because I see him not only determined as he was last year but also particularly strong. He completed a pre-season perhaps for the first time without injuries." Dybala suffered two serious injuries last season—one requiring meniscus surgery that sidelined him for three and a half months. Gasperini stated that further squad exits may follow only if they represent tactical switches rather than pure departures. "If there are other exits it is only for changes, to switch," he said. "In this moment there is nothing certain." The window closes in ten days. Roma finished last season on 73 points and third place in Serie A, but Gasperini stressed the slate resets: "Every year you start from zero. What was done was very positive and satisfactory for all, but when the season starts everyone begins at 0 points and the 73 points from last year must be played again."

Donyell Malen scored a hat-trick as Roma demolished Fiorentina 4–0, with the Dutch winger later captured in a video posted by his wife Delisha performing as a DJ to celebrate the result. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini praised the performance across the squad. In his post-match comments, Gasperini said: "Mora is extraordinary. Dybala is a beast. We need a few more reinforcements." Paulo Dybala also spoke after the match, stating: "We can finish higher than third place. I never had doubts about the contract renewal." Malen added: "Playing with Dybala is extraordinary. I don't want to say how many goals I'll score." The emphatic victory showcased Roma's attacking threat, with Dybala operating at his sharpest alongside Malen's match-winning display.

Roma opened their 2026-27 season with a commanding 3-0 victory over Fiorentina, with Donyell Malen scoring a hat-trick and Paulo Dybala providing three assists. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini saw encouraging debuts from Rodrigo Mora, Konstantinos Koulierakis and Santiago Castro. With a trip to Lecce at the Via del Mare scheduled for Monday 31 August at 18:30, Gasperini has given the squad a day's rest. Training will resume on Wednesday afternoon at Trigoria, ahead of the next fixture.

Bryan Cristante was interviewed after Roma's opening match of the 2026–27 season against Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico on 24 August. The midfielder said the team had put in a strong performance from the start and credited the squad's preparation during pre-season for their readiness. "We're in good shape, we had a good pre-season with all our efforts. If we carry on with performances like this it's very good. We're more ready because the squad is the same one. We're more prepared for the workload and the manager's demands, so we started with an extra gear," Cristante said. Cristante highlighted the impact of Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen, saying they "make the difference when they're in good form." He noted that Dybala has been making a difference in Italian football for years, while Malen scored immediately in January. Cristante also praised a player referred to as "Lulli", describing it as "a great performance" and saying he "can give us a hand." On the team's defensive solidity, Cristante reflected: "We've always done great training sessions, but in pre-season the workload takes its toll. However, the staff always get us ready when matches that count begin." The midfielder also reflected on his personal milestone, saying he was entering Roma's top ten for players with the most appearances for the club. "It's an incredible club and city. I'm honoured to enter the top ten. I hope to make as many appearances as possible and continue to win with performances like this," he said. On the team's ambitions, Cristante added: "Yes, we want to do better. We're starting from a more consolidated base: we're the same group. We're starting with an extra gear, but the season is long. Starting well is important, we want to improve on last year's result."