Roma skip return to Rome, fly to Manchester without Dybala for Champions League clash

Bryan Cristante has said Roma are genuine contenders this season and can go all the way, after a convincing away win at Udinese. Speaking in the post-match interview, the midfielder said the club know they are at the top and must keep winning to stay in touch with the leaders. Asked whether Roma can challenge for the title, he replied: "Ci proviamo, è chiaro" — "We're trying, that's clear. But if we play like this, there are chances to go all the way." Cristante is a key figure in Gian Piero Gasperini's side, and his performance at Udinese was outstanding. Despite ongoing physical discomfort that he deals with daily, and the extended absence of key players such as Koné, he delivered consistent, high-level displays, combining quantity with ten duels won, plus balls recovered and decisive plays in both attack and defence. He also scored a goal and provided an assist. His work in midfield, alongside Marten de Roon and the growing contribution of the young players, underlines the strength of Roma's central zone. Roma's form in front of goal is a major reason for their start. According to Corriere dello Sport, the club have scored 28 goals in their first 10 league matches, a figure not recorded at this stage since the 1960/61 and 2016/17 seasons. Cristante said: "Stiamo segnando tanto e creando tanto. Quando hai questa forza offensiva, vincere è più facile" — "We're scoring a lot and creating a lot. When you have this attacking strength, winning is easier." The team now travel directly to England to prepare for their Champions League clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Cristante added: "È sempre il Manchester United, anche se è in crisi. Parliamo di una squadra forte, che ha tantissimi giocatori di qualità e in casa loro è dura per tutti" — "It's always Manchester United, even if they are in crisis. We're talking about a strong team with plenty of quality players, and at home it's tough for everyone."

Roma routed Udinese, and Bryan Cristante was unanimously voted the best player on the pitch by the Italian newspapers after a dominant display under Gian Piero Gasperini. Udinese head coach Runjaic is under growing pressure, with his position on the bench increasingly at risk. Roma's players were almost all praised, with Molina rated among the least impressive of the Giallorossi while the marks for the rest of the team were very high. Cristante was singled out alongside Rodrigo Mora, Ghilardi and N'Dicka as the standout performers. The result was a clear and emphatic win, with Roma taking apart Udinese. The newspapers' ratings showed a broadly positive verdict on the team's performance, with several players reinforcing their claims for regular places in the side. The ratings from the main Italian dailies were as follows. Corriere dello Sport: Gollini 6; Ghilardi 7.5, N'Dicka 7.5, Hermoso 7 (Koulierakis sv); Molina 6, Cristante 8, De Roon 7.5, Wesley 7 (Rensch sv); Soulé 7.5 (Mancini sv), Mora 7.5 (Pisilli 6.5); Malen 7.5 (Castro 6.5). All: Gasperini 7.5. Il Messaggero: Gollini 6; Ghilardi 7, N'Dicka 7, Hermoso 6.5 (Koulierakis sv); Molina 6, Cristante 8, De Roon 6.5, Wesley 6.5 (Rensch sv); Soulé 7 (Mancini 6), Mora 7 (Pisilli 6); Malen 7 (Castro 6). All: Gasperini 7.5. Corriere della Sera: Gollini 6; Ghilardi 7, N'Dicka 7, Hermoso 6.5 (Koulierakis sv); Molina 6, Cristante 8, De Roon 7, Wesley 6.5 (Rensch sv); Soulé 7.5 (Mancini sv), Mora 7 (Pisilli 6); Malen 7 (Castro 6). All: Gasperini 7.5. La Repubblica: Gollini 6; Ghilardi 7, N'Dicka 6.5, Hermoso 6.5 (Koulierakis sv); Molina 6.5, Cristante 7.5, De Roon 6.5, Wesley 6 (Rensch sv); Soulé 7.5 (Mancini sv), Mora 7 (Pisilli 6); Malen 7.5 (Castro 6.5). All: Gasperini 7.5. Tuttosport: Gollini 6; Ghilardi 7, N'Dicka 7, Hermoso 6.5 (Koulierakis sv); Molina 6, Cristante 7.5, De Roon 6.5, Wesley 7 (Rensch sv); Soulé 7 (Mancini 6), Mora 7 (Pisilli 6); Malen 7.5 (Castro 6.5). All: Gasperini 7.

Daniele Ghilardi enjoyed his first Serie A goal in Roma's 4-0 win at Udinese, a result that brought smiles, records and new confidence to Gian Piero Gasperini's side. Ghilardi had earlier seen a goal ruled out for offside against Slovan Bratislava. Speaking after the match with a laugh, he said: "It's my first in A, I struck it with all the strength I had. It was the end of the game, I had cramps in my calves. I was dead, I was stretching and they didn't see me." He also teased team-mate Emanuele Lulli about goal celebrations: "I celebrated better than Emanuele because he wasn't used to it. I scored two in B and one in C. It took more than two seasons to do it in Serie A." The defender, who has moved past his early difficulties, now feels fully integrated into Gasperini's systems and into the central role he has in the team's play. Evan Ndicka also impressed at the back, scoring the decisive fourth goal and winning 100% of his duels, with four recoveries and four clearances. Ndicka said: "I'm happy, but above all for the team and for the three points. In the second half we dropped the tempo a little. When you close the first half 4-0 there is a risk of already thinking about the next games, but that didn't happen. We are all starters and each of us has his own minutes." Roma will not return to Rome straight after the win. The squad held a recovery session at Udinese's training centre, before travelling by coach to Trieste in the afternoon and then flying to England. Roma face Manchester United at Old Trafford in a demanding Champions League fixture. The medical staff have confirmed there will be no quick returns: Svilar, Dybala and Koné will not travel and are aiming to return ahead of the next fixtures before the November break.

Daniele Ghilardi enjoyed his first Serie A goal in Roma's 4-0 win at Udinese, a result that brought smiles, records and new confidence to Gian Piero Gasperini's side. Ghilardi had earlier seen a goal ruled out for offside against Slovan Bratislava. Speaking after the match with a laugh, he said: "It's my first in A, I struck it with all the strength I had. It was the end of the game, I had cramps in my calves. I was dead, I was stretching and they didn't see me." He also teased team-mate Emanuele Lulli about goal celebrations: "I celebrated better than Emanuele because he wasn't used to it. I scored two in B and one in C. It took more than two seasons to do it in Serie A." The defender, who has moved past his early difficulties, now feels fully integrated into Gasperini's systems and into the central role he has in the team's play. Evan Ndicka also impressed at the back, scoring the decisive fourth goal and winning 100% of his duels, with four recoveries and four clearances. Ndicka said: "I'm happy, but above all for the team and for the three points. In the second half we dropped the tempo a little. When you close the first half 4-0 there is a risk of already thinking about the next games, but that didn't happen. We are all starters and each of us has his own minutes." Roma will not return to Rome straight after the win. The squad held a recovery session at Udinese's training centre, before travelling by coach to Trieste in the afternoon and then flying to England. Roma face Manchester United at Old Trafford in a demanding Champions League fixture. The medical staff have confirmed there will be no quick returns: Svilar, Dybala and Koné will not travel and are aiming to return ahead of the next fixtures before the November break.

Roma have chosen not to return to Rome after their comfortable win over Udinese, staying overnight in Udine ahead of Tuesday evening's Champions League clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Il Tempo reports that the squad will hold a recovery session this morning at the Udinese training centre before a bus transfer to Trieste in the afternoon and onward travel to Manchester. The decision is designed to reduce travelling for the Giallorossi, who are back in the Champions League this season. Gian Piero Gasperini's side will effectively operate as a mini-training camp on the eve of the match. Paulo Dybala is set to miss the fixture, although Gasperini is still hoping for a last-minute recovery. The eve-of-match schedule includes a press conference with Gasperini and one player at around 18:20, followed immediately by a final training session, the rifinitura.

Rodrigo Mora has been rewarded with a place in the starting line-up at Udine, four days after he came off the bench to put Roma back ahead against Cagliari, and he repaid the faith by scoring again. Gian Piero Gasperini has handed the Portuguese a first-team shirt, and Mora is responding with goals. Up to this point Mora had produced almost all of his impact from the substitutes' bench. He scored against Lecce, set up Malen against Real Madrid, and scored and assisted against Cagliari. Against Cagliari, Roma had been pegged back to 2-2 in the 81st minute. Mora then headed the new lead and created the move that led to Malen's goal for 4-2, as Marco Juric notes in La Repubblica. The 22-year-old was bought from Porto for 25 million euros, a figure the Italian report describes as currently standing. The switch to the starting XI marks a new phase. Mora is no longer simply a surprise weapon off the bench; he now has to confirm his form. In a squad built to win immediately, with Dybala and Soulé ahead of him in the pecking order, his step up is arguably the most demanding one. Gasperini continues to rely on his strongest players, but he is also widening the group of players he trusts. In short, Mora's start at Udine is both a reward and a test, and the Roma coach is showing that his trust extends beyond his established first-choice players.

Daniele Ghilardi enjoyed his first Serie A goal in Roma's 4-0 win at Udinese, a result that brought smiles, records and new confidence to Gian Piero Gasperini's side. Ghilardi had earlier seen a goal ruled out for offside against Slovan Bratislava. Speaking after the match with a laugh, he said: "It's my first in A, I struck it with all the strength I had. It was the end of the game, I had cramps in my calves. I was dead, I was stretching and they didn't see me." He also teased team-mate Emanuele Lulli about goal celebrations: "I celebrated better than Emanuele because he wasn't used to it. I scored two in B and one in C. It took more than two seasons to do it in Serie A." The defender, who has moved past his early difficulties, now feels fully integrated into Gasperini's systems and into the central role he has in the team's play. Evan Ndicka also impressed at the back, scoring the decisive fourth goal and winning 100% of his duels, with four recoveries and four clearances. Ndicka said: "I'm happy, but above all for the team and for the three points. In the second half we dropped the tempo a little. When you close the first half 4-0 there is a risk of already thinking about the next games, but that didn't happen. We are all starters and each of us has his own minutes." Roma will not return to Rome straight after the win. The squad held a recovery session at Udinese's training centre, before travelling by coach to Trieste in the afternoon and then flying to England. Roma face Manchester United at Old Trafford in a demanding Champions League fixture. The medical staff have confirmed there will be no quick returns: Svilar, Dybala and Koné will not travel and are aiming to return ahead of the next fixtures before the November break.

Roma defender Daniele Ghilardi has scored his first goal, a strike that ended a match at Udinese, and has already drawn interest from AC Milan and Juventus. Roma have now scored 28 goals in ten matches this season and 36 in total including the three in the Champions League, with 14 different scorers so far. Ghilardi's goal came at the end of the match, when he was cramping in his calves. He said: "Sono molto contento. Ho calciato con tutta la forza che avevo. Era fine partita, avevo i crampi ai polpacci. Ero morto, stavo facendo stretching e non mi hanno visto". The goal follows earlier strikes from Emanuele Lulli, who scored against Genoa and Cagliari, and the article notes that Ghilardi is another young player to find the net. Milan and Juventus have already targeted him, but the focus at the club is not on his future. Ghilardi also teased his team-mate about his celebration. He said: "Ho esultato meglio di Emanuele ma perché lui non era abituato, io ne ho fatti due in B e uno in C. Ci sono volute più di due stagioni per farlo in A". Evan N'Dicka closed out a strong display in Udine, leaving no space for Davis and finishing with a 100% record in duels won, four recoveries and four clearances. Bryan Cristante was named man of the match after scoring his third goal against Udinese. Roma now turn their attention to Manchester United. The squad trained at Udinese's sports centre this morning and travel to England this afternoon. There are no fitness setbacks, but Mile Svilar, Paulo Dybala and Manu Koné will not be available.

Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini spoke to DAZN after Udinese 2-5 Roma, admitting his side dropped their level in the second half after going 0-4 down. Gasperini said he did not know why even the teams fighting for the top positions have small problems, adding that the drop-off was normal after the 0-4 scoreline, although he had told his players at half-time not to concede. Roma face Manchester in three days, and Gasperini noted that this has been the 8th match in less than 20 days. He said a lack of concentration had crept in: "We conceded a goal from distance, then this ugly one we wouldn't have conceded otherwise, a sign that we had switched off a bit. As soon as we accelerated a little, we were dangerous." Gasperini also spoke about the fixture congestion, which has Roma playing three times a week. He said: "A period this long with matches three times a week, I struggle to remember it. Maybe it happened in February, when I won the Europa League with Atalanta, but that was a different period. This is a phase I don't remember like this. These are high-level matches and difficult ones, so there is fatigue. After the next break, however many commitments there are, they will be a little fewer." He pointed to the absences of Svilar, Koné, Dybala and Pellegrini, adding that rotating the squad and giving everyone game time has helped. On his squad, Gasperini said: "I'm fortunate to have all the players, young and less young, who give great availability. The young ones always give it because they want to emerge and improve. I have a fantastic mix, we may have other faults, but the availability is there." He also praised Ghilardi's goal, saying: "He was unlucky because against Slovan they disallowed a goal, but he still had the desire inside to score, and today he managed it." Gasperini concluded on the condition of Koné, Svilar and Dybala: "I hope they recover before the break. In theory all three could, like no one else: this week is decisive."