Roma 3 Fiorentina 1: Malen scores hat-trick in Serie A opener

Konstantinos Koulierakis and Santiago Castro made their official competitive debuts for Roma in the opening Serie A match of the 2026–27 season against Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico. Both players arrived in the current transfer window and saw action after initial appearances in the club's pre-season training camp in Wales. Koulierakis, a Greek defender signed from Wolfsburg, entered the match in place of Mario Hermoso, while Castro came on as a substitute for Donyell Malen, who had scored a hat-trick before being withdrawn to applause from the home crowd. The two new arrivals had already featured in the squad's earlier warm-weather preparations, but this represented their first official competitive action in Roma colours.

Rodrigo Mora made his AS Roma debut at the Olimpico on 24 August, receiving an immediate opportunity from head coach Gasperini after just a week of training. The 19-year-old Portuguese forward played 53 minutes and nearly broke the deadlock with a striking effort from the edge of the box that seemed destined for the top corner, only for De Gea to deny him his first goal in giallorosso colours. Despite the close call, Mora's approach was assured and measured; he avoided overplaying and completed his task efficiently in what amounted to a successful audition. Gasperini had decided to give the young attacker a starting role immediately, backed by the faith shown in training. The Olimpico crowd supported Mora throughout his appearance, acknowledging a composed first outing. His substitution came at the 53-minute mark when Matías Soulé replaced him on the pitch. Gasperini had begun demanding more from his team after the interval, unsatisfied with Roma's second-half attitude before Donyell Malen added a second goal. As Mora departed to applause and headed to the bench, he approached his manager. The two embraced—a simple gesture that carried symbolic weight. The moment encapsulated an encouraging beginning: a debut, crowd recognition, and the warmth between player and coach that suggested a promising relationship was already forming.

Donyell Malen scored three goals as Roma opened the 2026–27 Serie A season against Fiorentina at the Olimpico, with Paulo Dybala providing all three assists in a dominant display of attacking football. Malen's opening goal, set up by Dybala after the Argentine had dribbled past two Fiorentina defenders and entered the box, initially drew him level with Gabriel Batistuta among Roma's all-time top scorers in the opening 20 matches of a season. However, the Dutch forward's second and third strikes—both again from Dybala crosses—saw him overtake the legendary Batistuta in that statistic. Malen's performance underlined his status as Roma's principal attacking threat. He has now scored 17 goals in 19 appearances for the club, figures that position him as the team's leading force. Dybala's three-assist haul completed a perfect attacking partnership, illuminating every offensive action Roma executed. The result also extended Roma's run of scoring in all their last 16 Serie A matches, a streak that reflects the offensive continuity built during head coach Gian Piero Gasperini's tenure.

Konstantinos Koulierakis and Santiago Castro made their official competitive debuts for Roma in the opening Serie A match of the 2026–27 season against Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico. Both players arrived in the current transfer window and saw action after initial appearances in the club's pre-season training camp in Wales. Koulierakis, a Greek defender signed from Wolfsburg, entered the match in place of Mario Hermoso, while Castro came on as a substitute for Donyell Malen, who had scored a hat-trick before being withdrawn to applause from the home crowd. The two new arrivals had already featured in the squad's earlier warm-weather preparations, but this represented their first official competitive action in Roma colours.

Rodrigo Mora made his AS Roma debut at the Olimpico on 24 August, receiving an immediate opportunity from head coach Gasperini after just a week of training. The 19-year-old Portuguese forward played 53 minutes and nearly broke the deadlock with a striking effort from the edge of the box that seemed destined for the top corner, only for De Gea to deny him his first goal in giallorosso colours. Despite the close call, Mora's approach was assured and measured; he avoided overplaying and completed his task efficiently in what amounted to a successful audition. Gasperini had decided to give the young attacker a starting role immediately, backed by the faith shown in training. The Olimpico crowd supported Mora throughout his appearance, acknowledging a composed first outing. His substitution came at the 53-minute mark when Matías Soulé replaced him on the pitch. Gasperini had begun demanding more from his team after the interval, unsatisfied with Roma's second-half attitude before Donyell Malen added a second goal. As Mora departed to applause and headed to the bench, he approached his manager. The two embraced—a simple gesture that carried symbolic weight. The moment encapsulated an encouraging beginning: a debut, crowd recognition, and the warmth between player and coach that suggested a promising relationship was already forming.

Donyell Malen scored three goals as Roma opened the 2026–27 Serie A season against Fiorentina at the Olimpico, with Paulo Dybala providing all three assists in a dominant display of attacking football. Malen's opening goal, set up by Dybala after the Argentine had dribbled past two Fiorentina defenders and entered the box, initially drew him level with Gabriel Batistuta among Roma's all-time top scorers in the opening 20 matches of a season. However, the Dutch forward's second and third strikes—both again from Dybala crosses—saw him overtake the legendary Batistuta in that statistic. Malen's performance underlined his status as Roma's principal attacking threat. He has now scored 17 goals in 19 appearances for the club, figures that position him as the team's leading force. Dybala's three-assist haul completed a perfect attacking partnership, illuminating every offensive action Roma executed. The result also extended Roma's run of scoring in all their last 16 Serie A matches, a streak that reflects the offensive continuity built during head coach Gian Piero Gasperini's tenure.

Roma begin the 2026-27 Serie A season at home to Fiorentina, with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini naming Rodrigo Mora in the attacking midfield role behind Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen. Matías Soulé drops to the bench. Lulli makes his competitive debut on the right flank in place of Nahuel Molina, who is not at full fitness; Wesley operates on the left. The defence comprises Gianluca Mancini, Evan N'Dicka, and Mario Hermoso, with Mile Svilar in goal. Gasperini's 3-4-1-2 formation pairs Bryan Cristante and Manu Koné in midfield. Fiorentina, managed by Grosso, line up in a 4-3-2-1 with David De Gea in goal and Lautaro Pellegrino as their striker. Roma's substitutes bench includes De Marzi, Koulierakis, Ghilardi, Ziółkowski, El Aynaoui, Pisilli, Vaz, Castro, and Soulé.

Roma take on Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico at 20:45 in the opening fixture of the Serie A season. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has named a 22-man squad for the match, with all new signings included in the selection. The squad omits Lorenzo Pellegrini and Devyne Rensch. In goal, Gasperini has selected Mile Svilar, Giorgio De Marzi, and Pierluigi Gollini. The defence includes Konstantinos Koulierakis, Evan N'Dicka, Nahuel Molina, Mario Hermoso, Gianluca Mancini, Jan Ziółkowski, Wesley, Lulli, and Daniele Ghilardi. Midfield options are Bryan Cristante, Neil El Aynaoui, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli, and Rodrigo Mora. Attacking players named are Santiago Castro, Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé, Paulo Dybala, and Robinio Vaz.

Devyne Rensch has been withdrawn from Roma's squad for tonight's Serie A opener against Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico after suffering a left flexor muscle strain in training at Trigoria. His condition will be assessed in the coming hours. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has otherwise named a full contingent, including new arrivals Konstantinos Koulierakis, Nahuel Molina, Rodrigo Mora and Santiago Castro. Emanuele Lulli has also been included after impressing in pre-season and joining the first-team group. Roma will begin their campaign with 23 players available, though the loss of Rensch leaves Gasperini with fewer options on the wing. The squad named for the match comprises: Svilar, De Marzi and Gollini in goal; Koulierakis, N'Dicka, Molina, Hermoso, Mancini, Ziolkowski, Wesley, Lulli and Ghilardi in defence; Cristante, El Aynaoui, Koné, Pisilli and Mora in midfield; and Castro, Malen, Soulé, Dybala and Vaz in attack.

Roma begin the 2026-27 Serie A season at home to Fiorentina, with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini naming Rodrigo Mora in the attacking midfield role behind Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen. Matías Soulé drops to the bench. Lulli makes his competitive debut on the right flank in place of Nahuel Molina, who is not at full fitness; Wesley operates on the left. The defence comprises Gianluca Mancini, Evan N'Dicka, and Mario Hermoso, with Mile Svilar in goal. Gasperini's 3-4-1-2 formation pairs Bryan Cristante and Manu Koné in midfield. Fiorentina, managed by Grosso, line up in a 4-3-2-1 with David De Gea in goal and Lautaro Pellegrino as their striker. Roma's substitutes bench includes De Marzi, Koulierakis, Ghilardi, Ziółkowski, El Aynaoui, Pisilli, Vaz, Castro, and Soulé.

Alessandro Romano scored on his Serie A debut for Cagliari against Parma this summer, immediately attracting attention from Italy's national team coach Roberto Mancini, who watched him from the stands at the Tardini. The midfielder, born in Winterthur, Switzerland, to an Italian family, holds dual citizenship and has previously represented Swiss youth sides but has not yet played for the Swiss senior team. Mancini has already begun efforts to persuade Romano to choose Italy over Switzerland. Romano's journey began when Bruno Conti spotted him in 2022 and brought him to Roma's Trigoria academy. The midfielder progressed through the Giallorossi system with strong form at Under-18 level, recording six goals and eight assists in 30 appearances, and worked closely with former manager Daniele De Rossi during his development with the first team. After making his professional debut in the closing stages of Lecce–Roma last season under Gian Piero Gasperini, Romano was loaned to Spezia in January 2025, then sent on a temporary deal to Cagliari this summer under manager Pisacane, with a purchase option that will automatically convert to an obligation. Romano described De Rossi as an "exceptional" coach and cited the chance to observe midfielder Leandro Paredes as formative. Speaking about his international future, he said: "It is not a priority." The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) is pushing to secure his talents. His opening goal for Cagliari and immediate first-team selection have already sparked regret among Roma supporters on social media, who lament yet another academy graduate being allowed to depart too soon.

Roma take on Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico at 20:45 in the opening fixture of the Serie A season. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has named a 22-man squad for the match, with all new signings included in the selection. The squad omits Lorenzo Pellegrini and Devyne Rensch. In goal, Gasperini has selected Mile Svilar, Giorgio De Marzi, and Pierluigi Gollini. The defence includes Konstantinos Koulierakis, Evan N'Dicka, Nahuel Molina, Mario Hermoso, Gianluca Mancini, Jan Ziółkowski, Wesley, Lulli, and Daniele Ghilardi. Midfield options are Bryan Cristante, Neil El Aynaoui, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli, and Rodrigo Mora. Attacking players named are Santiago Castro, Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé, Paulo Dybala, and Robinio Vaz.