Roma still without summer reinforcements as Gasperini finds solace in Dybala

Roma have decided against signing free agents to strengthen their squad this summer, with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini unconvinced of the approach. The club had allocated roughly €30 million for Leweling, and those funds will now be redirected to the January transfer window, with the club's strategy shaped by how this opening phase of the season unfolds. Jadon Sancho, whose transfer pursuit by Roma was revived in recent reports, will remain out of reach — the player missed Roma's opportunity a year ago and there are no remaining slots to fill. Wilfried Zaha, aged 33, initially appeared to match Roma's requirements but has suffered multiple health problems in recent years and has declined markedly from the Premier League standard of three to four seasons ago. Rafa Guerreiro was another candidate as an experienced left-back capable of playing on the offensive flank if needed, but the Portuguese player suffered recurring muscle problems last season, leaving Roma wary. Gasperini's stated preference is for a physical profile that Guerreiro does not provide.

Roma have declined an approach to sign Raphaël Guerreiro as a free agent, with director Tony D'Amico rejecting the proposal from intermediaries. The Portuguese defender and midfielder, who can operate on the left flank or in central midfield, was presented to the club's hierarchy but has not progressed beyond an initial offer. According to Fabrizio Romano, the deal remains inactive, with Roma having taken no official steps to open formal negotiations. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini's priorities centre on maintaining numerical and tactical balance across key positions rather than adding depth at full-back or midfield. The 31-year-old, a former Borussia Dortmund player with extensive European experience, does not currently fit Roma's transfer strategy, and barring unexpected developments in the coming weeks, the prospect is unlikely to be revisited.

Roma rejected Chelsea's advances for Manu Koné during the summer transfer window, turning away concrete interest from the London club without fielding a formal bid. Chelsea had identified the French midfielder as their ideal replacement for Enzo Fernandez, who joined Manchester City. Despite the potential financial benefit to Roma's accounts, sporting director Tony D'Amico and head coach Gian Piero Gasperini agreed that sacrificing such a central figure in Gasperini's system would undermine the team's ambitions. For the Piedmont-born coach, Koné is an indispensable fixture, deployed consistently since arriving in the capital and only absent through injury. Koné's athleticism and ability to swing the momentum of play make him the essential cog in Roma's territorial dominance. Gasperini has relied on the midfielder heavily across Roma's opening fixtures, and he delivered a standout performance in the recent home victory against Atalanta. In that match, Koné recovered seven loose balls and made two interceptions, providing constant support on the transition while working alongside Bryan Cristante with precision in play-switching and through-balls to the forward line. The number 28's contributions since the start of the season—following solid outings against Fiorentina and Lecce—underline why Roma chose to keep him. The rejuvenation of Roma's midfield structure depends on his presence and consistency, a factor that outweighed any transfer fee Chelsea might have offered.

Roma return to the Champions League for the first time in seven years when they travel to Istanbul to face Fenerbahce on Thursday evening. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini will deploy a squad combining several players making their maiden appearance in the competition's main draw alongside seasoned European campaigners. Gianluca Mancini and Manu Koné will make their Champions League debuts, as will younger squad members including Pisilli, Lulli, Mora and Ghilardi. Gasperini can call on considerable experience to balance the newcomers. Paulo Dybala and Marten de Roon have accumulated nearly one hundred appearances between them at the highest level. Nahuel Molina and Mario Hermoso both bring over sixty European appearances from their time at Atlético Madrid, while Donyell Malen, Leonardo Balerdi and Artem Dovbyk add further continental pedigree. Dybala will lead the attack and is targeting a European goal; his last came in the Europa League final in Budapest against Seville. Roma will be supported by approximately 2,300 fans in the away section at the Turkish stadium. The domestic competition faces a ticketing restriction for the upcoming Serie A fixture against Torino: the CASMS has banned ticket sales to residents of Rome province due to potential clashes with Parma supporters travelling to Como, permitting purchases only to AS Roma Card holders from other Italian regions.

Paulo Dybala will lead Roma's return to the Champions League after seven years when the club travels to Turkey on Thursday. The Argentine striker carries the most European experience in the squad—53 appearances and 18 goals, all earned with Juventus—but his Roma European journey away from the Olimpico remains barren. His last goal in a European away fixture came on 31 May in the Europa League final against Sevilla, a span of 1196 days. Since then, under both José Mourinho and Gian Piero Gasperini, Dybala has failed to score outside the Olimpico in continental competition. Dybala has not found the net since January, when he scored against Torino before suffering a knee injury. He returned late in the season without adding goals, though he provided several decisive assists as 2026 began in promising form. Thursday's match in Istanbul offers him the chance to end both droughts—his lack of goals this year and the long European away curse that has haunted his time in the giallorossi.

Matías Soulé is set to play a starring role in Roma's return to the Champions League as the club travel to face Fenerbahce. The Argentine forward's comeback comes on the back of a decisive display in the previous league fixture against Atalanta, marking his readiness to shine on the European stage four years after his debut in the competition with Juventus. Soulé's resurgence is the product of work undertaken with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini and Roma's restructured medical staff. The 2003-born forward arrived back this summer hampered by a troublesome groin injury and behind in his pre-season preparation, but worked hard during the training camp to regain peak condition. A transfer market saga saw Roma value him at €40 million in the face of interest from several Premier League clubs, while Gasperini considered the profile of Mason Greenwood for the right flank during early talks. Without official offers at that price and given Soulé's considerable commitment, he has been fully reinstated, with Gasperini certifying his complete physical and athletic recovery. In Istanbul, Roma will encounter both former Lazio striker Vedat Muriqi and Greenwood as opponents. For Soulé, the match represents the confirmation of a redemption arc that sees him restored to the heart of the capital club's tactical project, working in full harmony with teammate Paulo Dybala to deliver quality, unpredictability and high-level attacking solutions.

Roma return to the Champions League for the first time since March 2019 tonight in Istanbul against Fenerbahce, with Gasperini naming an unchanged side from Saturday's Serie A victory over Atalanta. Paulo Dybala, the 32-year-old Argentine absent from the competition for four and a half years since Juventus faced Villarreal in March 2022, will lead the team's attempt to translate the attacking form that has already impressed in Serie A wins over Fiorentina, Lecce and Atalanta. Dybala has played 253 minutes across Roma's opening three league fixtures under Gasperini's management. Nahuel Molina is the sole fresh name in the starting eleven after building his career in Europe with Atlético Madrid and the Argentine national team. The squad will draw on the experience of players for whom the Champions League anthem is familiar, with Svilar, Mancini, N'Dicka, Hermoso, Koné, Cristante, Wesley and Malen all named. Malen, who leads the Serie A scoring chart this season, will compete at elite European level for the first time in Roma colours. The night represents a transformation of nostalgia into present pride on the competition's stage, where Dybala has most thrived in his career.

Roma enter the Champions League for the first time in seven years on Thursday evening against Fenerbahce in Istanbul, arriving on the back of three consecutive Serie A victories and with a squad that has absorbed Gian Piero Gasperini's identity. The club intends to bring the same aggression and forward-thinking approach that has impressed domestically to the continent's elite competition, though the standard will inevitably be higher. Paulo Dybala will be central to Roma's European night. Gasperini appears intent on leaning on his most experienced players to guide a return to the highest stage after a long absence. The squad blends proven European hands with Champions League debutants: Mancini, Koné, Wesley, Pisilli, Mora, Ghilardi and Lulli will compete in the competition for the first time, while De Roon, Molina, Balerdi, Hermoso, Malen and Dybala bring substantial European pedigree. Gasperini himself knows these nights well from his time at Atalanta and will attempt to transfer that experience to Roma without changing the team's character—one built on constant attacking intent and refusal to surrender. Matías Soulé is among the most anticipated performers. After physical problems last season and a summer marked by transfer speculation, the Argentine has rediscovered form with two consecutive goals against Lecce and Atalanta, plus a 93rd-minute strike that set the Olimpico alight. He now faces Fenerbahce, featuring Mason Greenwood, one of Roma's major targets during the summer transfer window. Roma arrive in Istanbul with confidence and a squad mixing veterans and debutants. While not obliged to compete as equals with Europe's strongest sides, they have the tools to become an awkward obstacle. Gasperini knows it well: seven years on, Roma return among the stars—and they intend to do so without fear.

Paulo Dybala will face the Champions League stage for the first time in over four years when Roma travel to Istanbul to face Fenerbahce on matchday one of the league phase. The Argentine forward last appeared in the competition on 16 March 2022 in Juventus colours and has accumulated 53 appearances and 18 goals across his Champions League career. He remained at Roma over the summer to lead the club in Europe after a strong start to the season, recording four assists in the first three Serie A matches. The Istanbul fixture will pit Dybala against former Roma striker Romelu Lukaku and Mason Greenwood, though Fenerbahce will be without suspended midfielder Guendouzi. For Roma, the match marks the Champions League debut of several squad members including Gianluca Mancini, Wesley, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli, Matías Soulé and Rodrigo Mora, who will feature alongside more experienced European campaigners. Coach Gian Piero Gasperini appears to favour experience in his starting selection, with Nahuel Molina leading the race for the right-back role ahead of Emanuele Lulli, and Donyell Malen positioned as the central attacker, leaving the only outstanding decision on the attacking line between Soulé and Mora. Separately, the Italian Football Federation's Federal Prosecutor has opened a formal investigation into a verbal altercation between Atalanta chief executive Luca Percassi and Roma sporting director Tony D'Amico that occurred after the Roma-Atalanta match. With no federal inspectors present in the Olimpico car park at the time of the incident, Federal Prosecutor Giuseppe Chinè will now assess the evidence and determine any disciplinary action.