Roma pursue Moreira but face hefty asking price; attack reinforcement remains priority

Roma have entered the race for Franck Kessié with a concrete move. On the evening of 25 August, the club met the Ivorian midfielder's agent at a hotel in Rome and presented an offer, according to Gianluca Di Marzio. The development threatens to shift the transfer landscape: Juventus, who had held the advantage in negotiations and secured the player's priority, may now be forced to accelerate their efforts to avoid being overtaken. Juventus have intensified contact in recent hours and are considering closing a deal without waiting for further outgoings. Their proposal reportedly runs for two years with an option for a third season. Roma's intervention represents a concrete step with Kessié's representatives and marks them as genuine contenders. The coming hours are expected to be decisive as both clubs battle for the midfielder's signature. The competition between Roma and Juventus will now shape the final stages of Kessié's negotiations, with each side raising the stakes to secure the player's commitment.

Alessandro Romano has become the latest academy graduate to leave Roma for a substantial fee, joining Cagliari this summer for €5 million plus add-ons after scoring on his debut for the Sardinian club. The midfielder's departure exemplifies a pattern established under José Mourinho's tenure, when Roma developed and sold players including Tahirovic, Felix and Missori at significant profit. Romano arrived at Trigoria in 2022 from Winterthur for €70,000 thanks to the initiative of Vincenzo Vergine, who ran the academy from July 2021 until September 2023. The lengthy negotiations to secure the Italian-Swiss player were competitive, as Roma were not alone in pursuit; Romano has since attracted attention from national team coach Mancini, though he has represented only Switzerland's youth sides. That same year Vergine also brought Sergej Levak, a Croatian midfielder, to the club. Levak now plays for Atalanta's under-23 side and has already caught the eye of Sarri for the senior squad, but generated no transfer profit as he left Roma on a free transfer at the end of his contract this summer. Mourinho gave league debuts to 14 academy players overall, and the broader youth system proved crucial to Roma's finances in summer 2023 when several academy products were sold to balance the accounts. Romano and Levak represent the latest generation from a pipeline that has consistently delivered sellable talent.

Roma remain active in the transfer market with multiple targets in focus as the summer window enters its final phase. Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, the 22-year-old winger, continues to gain ground in Roma's pursuit of a final attacking reinforcement. New contact with Chelsea is expected in the coming hours, following the club's rejection of Roma's initial proposal of a loan with a purchase option for an overall package worth around €45 million. Chelsea have declined that formula and prefer either an outright sale or stronger guarantees on any obligation to buy. Roma's sporting director D'Amico continues to push the negotiations. Malick Fofana, 21, remains another priority target. The Lyon forward has already chosen Roma and personal terms have been agreed, but the French club's €35 million fixed fee plus €5 million in bonuses has left Roma pausing to assess the financial sustainability of another major investment following the recent signing of Mora. Lyon's Champions League qualifying match against Fenerbahce could prove pivotal; an elimination of the French side could facilitate a sale. Meanwhile, defender Jan Ziolkowski, 21, has attracted concrete interest. Parma have opened talks with Roma and tabled an offer of between €7 and €8 million for a permanent transfer. Club-to-club dialogue is described as well under way, though the proposal has not yet fully satisfied Roma's demands. Monza also remain in contention but would prefer a loan arrangement instead. Neil El Aynaoui, 25, the Moroccan midfielder, is another player Roma may be willing to sell. He is not considered untouchable, and an appropriate offer in the final week of the window could see him depart. Any significant departure would give the club greater financial room to complete the squad with the final reinforcement Gasperini has requested.

Jayden Oosterwolde arrived in Rome on 25 August but his transfer from Fenerbahçe to Roma hit an unexpected snag when medical staff demanded further tests before signing off on the deal. The Dutch left-back, Gasperini's fifth summer signing, was due to sign his contract today but the green light was delayed pending the outcome of fresh medical assessments this morning. Initial fitness tests came back clear, but Roma's medical team wanted to examine a recent muscular problem that sidelined him in recent weeks. Gasperini plans to deploy Oosterwolde on the left flank as a back-up to Wesley, though his versatility also allows him to play as a centre-back. The player has already resumed running and should be fully available by mid-September. Only after final clearance from the medical consultations would the transfer be formally concluded. The deal is structured as a €1 million loan fee with a €15 million purchase option. The obligation to buy will trigger automatically if Oosterwolde makes 20 appearances of at least 45 minutes each.

Gian Piero Gasperini deployed three different formations during Roma's match against Fiorentina, avoiding the 3-4-2-1 system that defined last season but never abandoning the aggressive one-on-one pressing and intensity that characterise his approach. The tactical adjustments were made to nullify Fiorentina's threats rather than to compensate for transfer market gaps or absences. Gasperini's willingness to shift shape underscores a deeper principle: Roma's behaviour remains unchanged regardless of formation. The side consistently attacks, with N'Dicka operating as a target on the attacking third and Mancini and Hermoso—later replaced by Koulierakis—covering the flanks. Fiorentina manager Grosso began in a 4-3-2-1 before moving to 4-2-4 when Roma went two goals clear. With Kean deployed alongside Pellegrino, Gasperini matched the adjustment with an identical system. The lineup featured Svilar in goal, Lulli, Mancini, N'Dicka and Hermoso across the back, Cristante and Koné in midfield, and Soulé, Dybala, Malen and Wesley in attack. Soulé had replaced Mora at 2-0. When Grosso shifted to 4-3-3 late on, Gasperini responded by introducing El Aynaoui and Pisilli for Koné and Dybala, switching to a 3-5-1-1. This brought Mancini, N'Dicka and Koulierakis across the back, a five-man midfield of Lulli, Pisilli, Cristante, El Aynaoui and Wesley, with Soulé supporting Castro in attack. Roma scored a fourth goal. Gasperini's track record with such adjustments is long and proven, but the club now needs a right-footed winger capable of providing thrust on the break and winning one-on-one duels. The manager will learn soon whether Chelsea is willing to negotiate for Gittens, and after Lyon play Fenerbahce tomorrow evening, whether an agreement with Fofana can be finalised.

Roma demolished Fiorentina 4–0 in a commanding display, with Donyell Malen scoring a hat-trick to lead the charge. Paulo Dybala contributed three assists and Manu Koné was withdrawn only through fatigue, underlining Roma's control. Debutant Daniele Ghilardi impressed in an early appearance, while Evan N'Dicka stood firm at the back as the team moved to 3–4–1–2 formation under head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. All five major Italian newspapers awarded Roma positive marks across the board. Svilar received ratings between 6 and 6.5 in goal. The defence was solid, with N'Dicka rated 7 to 7.5 by all outlets and Mancini and Hermoso both praised. In midfield, Cristante earned 6.5 to 7, while Wesley was rated 6 to 7 on the flank. Koné's 6.5 to 7.5 reflected his strong showing before substitution. Malen's 8.5 to 9 and Dybala's 8 to 9 dominated the attacking ratings. Corrections made 68 minutes in saw Koulierakis introduced for Hermoso, while Pisilli replaced Koné at 79 minutes. Rodrigo Mora (6.5) and later Matías Soulé (6) featured in attack; Santiago Castro entered for Malen at 68 minutes. Gasperini earned 7.5 to 8 from the press corps. N'Dicka's display of 7 to 7.5, Koné's energy and Ghilardi's first appearance highlighted a Roma side functioning with precision and depth throughout.

Emanuele Lulli made his Serie A debut in Roma's 4–0 victory over Fiorentina on 24 August 2026, delivering numbers that exceeded the seasonal average of predecessor Zeki Çelik. The 19-year-old academy product recorded four successful tackles, 56 touches, 86.5% pass accuracy, seven duels won out of ten, and a decisive recovery that led to Donyell Malen's goal for the 3–0. In the 2025–26 season, Çelik averaged a rating between 6.7 and 7.0 with roughly two tackles per 90 minutes and solid passing precision; Lulli's intensity and physicality in his opening match surpassed that baseline. The comparison extends beyond statistics. Çelik managed play with experience and positional sense across four years in the shirt; Lulli brought the aggressive, tireless profile that Gasperini has consistently sought in his wide defenders—more in the mould of a pressing, high-intensity fullback than a controlled operator. Gasperini's system rewards corsa, aggressiveness and constant covering rather than refined crossing. Çelik departed for Juventus without generating significant regret, but a Palestrina and Trigoria academy graduate has now demonstrated, at least in raw output, superior performance to the departed player's average. Lulli remains incomplete. He must improve his ball management and the quality of his final pass. He showed no signs of being overwhelmed by the context and contributed concretely to Roma's cause. The performance serves as more than tactical encouragement: it reinforces a working principle that the academy, when given proper development and managerial backing, can generate solutions better suited to Gasperini's model than external recruitment alone.

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.

Devyne Rensch's muscular injury is not as serious as initially feared. An MRI on his left flexor revealed no major damage, with recovery expected to take 7–10 days; he is likely to miss the away trip to Lecce as a precaution after sustaining the problem during the match against Fiorentina. Donyell Malen's strong early-season form has reignited the race for the Serie A top scorer award. The Dutch forward has scored 17 goals in 19 matches for Roma, averaging 0.89 goals per game—a tally matching Lautaro Martínez's winning total in last season's title race, although Martínez reached it across 30 appearances. Malen is now positioned as Martínez's primary rival for the honour this term. Head coach Gasperini continues to manage expectations after Roma's 4–0 victory over Fiorentina. When asked about the title race, he responded dismissively: "You are a broken record." Gasperini's strategy is to capitalize on the fixture schedule and build momentum against Lecce and Atalanta, targeting 7–9 points before entering a more demanding phase of the season. Paulo Dybala has completed his entire pre-match preparation without injury or physical issues—a notable change from previous campaigns. Gasperini has praised his athletic condition but acknowledges that with Champions League, Serie A and Coppa Italia all running, he must carefully manage Dybala's minutes and recovery to maintain peak performance. Meanwhile, Unione Tifosi Romanisti and Associazione Italiana Roma Club have strongly protested the travel ban imposed on Roma supporters for the Lecce fixture. The fan groups argue it is "yet another unjust, discriminatory measure against Roma supporters" and point out that the Questore of Rome reported no incidents at the Olimpico during last season, calling for restoration of the "right to free movement of all citizens."

Andrea Stramaccioni has praised Roma's performance against Fiorentina, saying the club can position itself as a serious challenger to Inter and Napoli if they add one final piece to complete the left side of attack for Gasperini. Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, Stramaccioni said: "If they add one last piece to make Gasperini happy and complete the left side of the attack, in my view they can position themselves as immediate rivals to Inter and Napoli." Watching Roma live on 24 August, Stramaccioni was struck by their intensity and consistency. "It is rare to see a team play at these rhythms for 90 minutes," he said. Dybala's performance particularly impressed him: the Argentine created three assists from three ball-carrying accelerations and made a defensive recovery in the 75th minute on the halfway line. "In these conditions in our Serie A it becomes very difficult to stop them. And the chemistry with Malen is natural football chemistry." Stramaccioni also highlighted Koné's world-class level, praised Rodrigo Mora's previously missing characteristics, and noted the strength of Roma's Italian spine—Mancini, Cristante, and Pellegrini—all of whom renewed their contracts at Gasperini's insistence. Asked whether the title picture had shifted before matchday one, Stramaccioni acknowledged it is early with transfers and squads still being completed, but said: "Inter and Roma have made a very strong start: they have clear and defined ideas of play."

Andrea Stramaccioni believes Roma need only one more signing to establish themselves as genuine challengers to Inter and Napoli this season. Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, the analyst was impressed by Roma's league debut: "If they add one final piece to make Gasperini happy and complete the left side of the attack, Roma can position themselves as an immediate antagonist to Inter and Napoli." Stramaccioni highlighted the intensity and consistency of Roma's opening performance. "On 24 August it is rare to see a team play at these rhythms for 90 minutes," he said. He singled out Paulo Dybala's creativity and work rate—"three assists following three accelerations with the ball at his feet, and at 75' he made a defensive run to win the ball back on the midfield line"—and praised the natural chemistry between Dybala and Donyell Malen. He also commended Manu Koné as "at world level" and identified Rodrigo Mora as bringing characteristics the squad previously lacked. Stramaccioni emphasised the strength of Roma's midfield and defence, describing the "personality, strength and solidity of the Italian spine" reinforced by Gasperini's priority renewals of Gianluca Mancini, Bryan Cristante and Lorenzo Pellegrini. On the wider title race, he added: "It is early—the market and squads are still to be completed—but Inter and Roma have started very strong: clear and defined ideas of play."