Roma unveil 2026-27 away kit as white returns to celebrate 'Pietas'

Roma lost 3-2 to Manchester United at Old Trafford, and Leonardo Balerdi was one of the match's standout figures before a decisive mistake. The Argentine defender played very well for around 80 minutes, then miscued a clearance under pressure, allowing Cunha to equalise at 2-2. Despite that moment, Balerdi produced an excellent performance, and his overall impact at Roma has been positive. According to Fabrizio Romano, the Giallorossi are inclined to exercise their option to buy his contract from Marseille, for a fee of between 11 and 14 million euros, depending on his number of appearances of at least 45 minutes this season. The player is happy in the capital and the club is satisfied with his performance. There is also a background development: the defender, born in 1999, was sounded out by Inter in the summer, while Juventus had considered him on several occasions in recent years.

Fonseca has left Lyon and is set to join Sporting, with the Portuguese club's announcement expected shortly. The former Roma coach has terminated his contract with the French club and must pay a compensation fee of €5 million, as stipulated in the agreement he signed. Tears at the end of the match against Angers had hinted at his departure. The move takes Fonseca back to Portugal for the first time in ten years. His last spell there was with Braga in 2016. The task ahead is to get Sporting back to the heights they reached in recent years. Another date has already been circled: on 8 December at the Olimpico, Roma face Sporting, and Fonseca is expected to line up as an opponent. For Roma, the fixture gives the club's supporters a first look at their former coach on the opposite bench in Rome, a return that will draw attention in the capital.

Referee Marco Di Bello of the Brindisi section has been appointed to officiate Roma's Serie A home match against Sassuolo at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday 7 November, the Lega Serie A has announced. Roma return to action looking to put behind them the defeat at Manchester and continue their excellent start to the league campaign. Assistants Peretti and Scatragli will run the line, with Abisso as fourth official. Pezzuto will be at the VAR, with Guida in the AVAR role. Di Bello and Roma have a strongly positive history. The official has 34 previous meetings with the club, producing 21 wins, 6 draws and 7 defeats for Roma. Their most recent meeting came on 25 April 2026, when Roma won 2-0 at Bologna. Before that match, the Giallorossi had won seven consecutive games under Di Bello and had gone nine matches unbeaten. Di Bello also refereed the wins over Genoa and Cremonese in the 2025/26 season. Di Bello has 17 previous matches with Sassuolo, with a record of 4 wins, 7 draws and 6 defeats for the Neroverdi. His most recent meeting with the club came this season, when he took charge of Bologna-Sassuolo on 6 September 2026, which ended 2-2. Overall, Sassuolo's record under the Brindisi referee is less favourable than Roma's, a club that has built a long run of positive results with him in recent years.