Roma tired after eight matches in 23 days as Gasperini prepares for Sassuolo

Donyell Malen is set to lead Roma's attack again when they host Sassuolo at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, as the Giallorossi look to climb to the top of Serie A despite a growing injury list and the demands of the Champions League. Malen has never faced Sassuolo in a Roma shirt, as he had not yet arrived in the capital for their last meeting in January. The Dutch forward has scored 12 goals this season and has 27 in 33 appearances for the club overall. He scored 14 Serie A goals in the second half of last season and has eight in the first 10 matchdays of this campaign. He scored again in Manchester, confirming his role as the focal point of an attack that has found valuable support in Soulé and Mora. Argentine Soulé creates, Portuguese Mora supports, and Malen finishes. The match pits the best attack in Serie A against the worst defence. Roma have scored 28 goals, the most in the league, while Sassuolo, under Aquilani, have conceded 26 and arrive on the back of four consecutive defeats. Roma are fighting to put pressure on their rivals at the top of the table, having been forced to manage a squad hit by a lengthening list of absentees. The report, written by Marco Juric for La Repubblica, underlines how Gasperini's side are relying on a familiar formula. Soulé's invention, Mora's movement and Malen's finishing have made the forward line the team's most potent force, and Roma will be looking to keep that partnership productive against a Sassuolo side desperate for a result.

Roma return to Serie A action at the Stadio Olimpico against Sassuolo, the ninth match after the September international break and a fixture the club will approach with its unbeaten domestic run intact. Gasperini's side are in form in the league, and the games that matter most for the squad come after the next break. Il Messaggero's Alessandro Angeloni described the team's strength as clearest when viewed through two lenses: league football and home matches. Since Gasperini took charge, the club has been a steamroller in Serie A. Last season he won seven of the final nine league games, five of them in the last five, to reach third place. Roma have not lost a league match since last April. The heavy 5-0 defeat at Inter in Milan was a turning point, after which the team began to surge. At home, a league defeat has not occurred since the night against Napoli, and the last home league loss came on 30 November, almost a year ago. Attention now turns to the period after the Christmas break. The squad, according to the article, is not quite adequate for the two major fronts of Serie A and the Champions League, not so much in quality as in numbers, and the club will need the ownership to intervene to strengthen it. Physical problems have forced Gasperini to cope with a long run of injuries, and the recurring emergency is expected to end eventually. Before that, Roma must get past Sassuolo.

Paulo Dybala will miss Roma's final match before the international break against Sassuolo at the Stadio Olimpico tomorrow, with the Argentine forward having worked on a differentiated training programme again on Wednesday. It will be the seventh consecutive game he has missed. Dybala is not willing to take a risk and is aiming to be back at 100% for the resumption of the season. Gasperini will rely on Matías Soulé and Mora behind Donyell Malen in attack. Devyne Rensch is also ruled out, with a first-degree tear of the long right adductor and twenty days of rest. Manu Koné and Pierluigi Gollini are both in doubt, although the signs are negative particularly for the midfielder, who risks not answering the call from Zidane with France. Gasperini will be able to welcome back Mile Svilar when play resumes. The report was written by Francesco Balzani in La Gazzetta dello Sport.