Rensch set for key role at Verona as Roma chase Champions League spot

Matías Soulé made his Argentina debut on 3 October 2026 alongside Santiago Castro, a milestone that has drawn unwanted attention from Fabián Berlanga, president of Velez Sarsfield, the club where Soulé grew up before leaving for Juventus at age 16. Berlanga has called for severe sanctions against the Roma forward, saying: "Soulé as Argentina's new number 10 after Messi? No, he should instead face an exemplary punishment. For example, permanent exclusion from the possibility of ever wearing that shirt number, or from wearing the captain's armband. He is not a good example. We don't like when young players leave on a free transfer, but we know it's a battle to fight against agents, who sometimes act in bad faith." The animosity stems from 2019, when Soulé, then a teenager, exploited a legal provision for underage footballers to break his Velez contract and depart on a free transfer. Berlanga's grievance centres on how the player, his family and his representatives used the regulation to circumvent the club's interests. The comments represent a reopening of old tensions surrounding Soulé's youth-level exit from Argentina.

Roma and AC Milan are locked in a contest to sign Real Madrid forward Endrick in January, with the 19-year-old Brazilian having previously agreed terms with the Giallorossi in the summer before the deal collapsed. Sporting Director D'Amico and head coach Gasperini have not abandoned their pursuit and are preparing a fresh attempt. Milan, however, hold a significant advantage: the club has a partnership with Roc Nation, the agency representing Endrick's interests, since 2020—a relationship that has continued under current president Gerry Cardinale. Milan also brokered an agreement with Endrick over the summer before José Mourinho blocked a proposed loan move. Endrick has struggled for minutes at the Bernabéu despite Mourinho's assurances, strengthening Milan's hand as they sense they are in pole position over Roma. The Rossoneri will lean on their established relationship with Roc Nation and their existing ties with Real Madrid to attempt to secure the player in the coming months.

Manu Koné encountered his former manager Claudio Ranieri during France's match against Italy at the Stade de France in Paris, with the Roma midfielder sharing a photograph of the reunion on social media. Ranieri now holds the position of technical director of the Italian Football Federation. Koné and Ranieri were central figures in Roma's 2024-25 season and the club's comeback that nearly secured Champions League qualification before Gian Piero Gasperini's arrival in June 2025.

Roma enter a critical period from 11 October that will reveal whether their depth can match their starting XI. Between the away trip to Como and the home fixture against Sassuolo on 7 November, the Giallorossi will play nine matches in 28 days—six in Serie A and three in the UEFA Champions League—at an average of one game every three days. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has built his team around a recognisable core of first-choice players, but that group will no longer be enough. The test will determine whether those who have played less can step up without a noticeable drop in performance. Through the first five matchdays, the numbers reveal Gasperini's structural priorities. Goalkeeper Mile Svilar has not missed a minute in the league; Bryan Cristante has played 424 minutes, Mario Hermoso 419, Paulo Dybala 407 and Gianluca Mancini 392. Eight players have exceeded 300 minutes, forming the nucleus around which the team has built its current lead. Donyell Malen has scored six goals in five league matches and become the technical reference point of the attack, while Dybala has contributed four assists. Cristante, Hermoso and Mancini have provided near-absolute continuity and reliability. The midfield partnership of Cristante and Manu Koné has been the reference pairing, with different but complementary characteristics, while Marten de Roon and Niccolò Pisilli have seen far less action. De Roon knows Gasperini's football intimately and can guarantee balance and reading of play, but has been used mainly in brief spells; Pisilli brings dynamism and runs forward but must prove he can perform when the opponent's quality rises. Matches against Real Madrid, Napoli and Manchester United will inevitably create minutes for both. The defence faces similar pressures. Mancini and Hermoso have been almost untouchable, but the competition behind them is abundant: Leonardo Balerdi, Daniele Ghilardi and Konstantinos Koulierakis must transform from alternatives into genuinely interchangeable options. Ghilardi has already accumulated 142 league minutes, while Koulierakis has been used far less despite the summer investment. In Gasperini's system, where defenders are asked to accept constant individual duels and play far from their goal, changing a centre-back is never a neutral substitution—the player entering must have fully absorbed the line's timing, aggression and mechanics. On the flanks, rotations will be equally unavoidable. Wesley has been heavily used, young Emanuele Lulli has been a major surprise, and Nahuel Molina has collected 216 Serie A minutes with two starts. Devyne Rensch has found the least space but has always proved reliable. In attack, Matías Soulé has already broken down the distinction between starter and reserve with 279 minutes, three starts, two goals and an assist. Rodrigo Mora has 171 league minutes and a goal across two starts but has seen his space diminish. Santiago Castro has played little and never started in the league, while Lorenzo Pellegrini arrives after a long absence from official matches and must regain rhythm and standing. The fixture list permits no simple calculations. Como, Real Madrid, Genoa, Slovan Bratislava, Napoli, Cagliari, Udinese, Manchester United and Sassuolo in less than a month means there are no real matches in which to field eleven reserves and rest everyone else. Gasperini must continually shuffle the cards, retaining six or seven men from the core structure each time and progressively introducing others. Roma has shown a competitive first eleven so far; in the next four weeks it must prove it has something more—sixteen or eighteen players capable of sustaining the same level. If the goal is to stay in the highest reaches of Serie A while being competitive in the Champions League, the quality of alternatives becomes almost as important as that of the starters.

Gian Piero Gasperini has made wing play central to Roma's football, and the club is working to maximise the impact of their flanks ahead of the league's resumption. Wesley, the Brazilian who has been the most brilliant performer in recent months, is recovering from an ankle distortion near the end of summer training and a subsequent muscle problem, and is using three weeks of focused work at Trigoria while sitting out national team duties to return to peak fitness for the match against Como. On the opposite flank, Nahuel Molina is asserting himself with force. The Argentine returned to Serie A with four years at Atlético Madrid and a World Cup winner's medal in his record, and has integrated quickly into Gasperini's system. He has played against both Torino and Inter, showing versatility as a left winger in the 3-4-2-1 formation, cutting infield onto his stronger foot and coming close to goals while already recording one assist. Beyond the summer transfers, a major surprise for Roma is nineteen-year-old Emanuele Lulli. Though he caught Gasperini's attention in the previous season without being a primary Primavera player, the young right-sided defender has carved out important space through pace and attacking boldness. The club is working to secure him with a meeting scheduled soon between the management and his representative to discuss a contract renewal that expires in June. With Devyne Rensch completing the full-back contingent, Gasperini has all the tools to unlock Roma's flanks.

Gian Piero Gasperini has steered Roma to the top of Serie A after four wins and a draw in his opening matches, accumulating 13 points alongside Inter and Lazio. The coach, who guided Roma to third place and Champions League qualification in the 2025-26 season, has introduced three key innovations that have reshaped the squad's identity. The first centres on the fullback role. Despite having four right-sided options available in Molina, Rensch, Lulli and Wesley, Gasperini has stabilised Wesley on the left flank, instructing him not only to attack but to drift infield to link play with teammates. Gasperini explained the reasoning: "There was an idea to sign a left-footer, but not having one is no problem for me. Like in attack, we can have inverted wingers." The second innovation is Gasperini's ability to reshape the team mid-match without predetermined patterns, including reorganising the defence on tactical impulse. In Roma's clash against Atalanta, he changed two-thirds of the back line to overturn a deficit, saying: "When you go behind you rarely think about changing at the back, but we were struggling and fresh energy there put the ball back in our hands." Beyond the pitch, Gasperini has transformed the handling of the Roman environment—traditionally a source of complex pressure. He has repositioned supporters' enthusiasm as a motivational force, stating: "The city is everything, it motivates and stimulates you. The Olimpico always full is wonderful, it gives you positive pressure." At Trigoria training ground, he has fostered an atmosphere where players want to be: "There is an environment here where you have pleasure in coming. I am in love with this group."

AS Roma have been working on a move for Real Madrid forward Endrick over the last few months, with increasingly positive signals that a deal could materialise in January. Sporting director Tony D'Amico is driving the initiative, and crucially, Endrick has already given his approval to join the Giallorossi, viewing a Roma move as an opportunity to regain prominence after his time in Madrid. Endrick's father is also supportive of the transfer, particularly given that his Brazilian teammate Wesley is performing well at Roma. The player has confided to close friends that a switch to the Giallorossi is a genuine possibility. AC Milan have also attempted to recruit Endrick, but Roma are ahead in the race, having already held initial talks with the player and his representatives. A forthcoming fixture between Roma and Real Madrid could provide a suitable moment for both parties to advance discussions further on the deal.

Wesley was spotted at Ponte Milvio test-driving his new Lamborghini during the international break. The Roma defender, born in 2003, remained in the capital rather than travel during the national team pause, taking the opportunity to enjoy some leisure time away from Trigoria. Wesley is currently recovering from a physical problem that prevented him from answering Brazil's call-up. He is expected to rejoin full training in the coming days with the goal of returning to Gian Piero Gasperini's squad for the resumption of the league campaign.

Roma continued their preparation at Trigoria on 2 October with a session focused on the international break, as head coach Gian Piero Gasperini worked with a reduced squad while players were away on national team duty. The club's next fixture is a trip to Como on Sunday 11 October at 12:30, where they will face the Serie A side at the Stadio Sinigaglia. Lorenzo Pellegrini trained regularly with the group and has recovered from injury, though he remains without competitive minutes this season. The Como match could offer him an opportunity to return to action, with Gasperini to assess his readiness based on the coming days' training. Wesley and Donyell Malen are expected to return to full training in the next few days as staff monitor their condition, while Bryan Cristante will miss the Como fixture due to a knee problem. Roma's sporting director Tony D'Amico attended the session at Trigoria to oversee preparations for the away trip.