Roma's second-half weakness: Gasperini identifies first real flaw

Roma have begun the 2026-27 season strongly, scoring freely and proving they can match Serie A's leading sides—but head coach Gian Piero Gasperini sees room to unlock quality in a specific area without returning to the transfer market. The key zone is the left-sided attacking midfield, where two very different players can become important: Rodrigo Mora and Lorenzo Pellegrini. Mora arrived in summer carrying the label of an elite young talent and made an immediate impression at Roma, including scoring against Lecce. The 19-year-old, born in 2007, started brightly but recent weeks have revealed the uneven path young prospects travel. His recent appearances have been less incisive; at Turin he came on in the second half without making a particular mark, and against Inter he remained on the bench for the entire match despite Roma's need for fresh attacking quality, especially in the second half. Gasperini has continued to speak of Mora as a player with great talent but has been clear about the work still required. "He needs to complete himself physically above all, and also tactically," Gasperini said. The club invested heavily in the Portuguese midfielder and nobody at Trigoria sees the present moment as an endpoint. Mora must learn to be decisive when space narrows, tempo increases and time to think diminishes. Pellegrini's summer has been almost the opposite. Rather than fighting immediately for a starting place, he underwent lengthy work to rebuild his body and sort his contract future. After an injury that kept him sidelined in the final stages of last season, Pellegrini renewed his Roma deal through 2027 and has only recently returned to regular availability. Gasperini is not rushing his reintegration: the midfielder has not played an official match in months. The international break presents an opportunity Gasperini is considering carefully—he is evaluating the organisation of friendly matches to allow players remaining at Trigoria to accumulate minutes and match rhythm. For Pellegrini this pause can become a platform for restart. After weeks split between recovery and contract renewal, the goal is to become a genuine solution rather than merely a name on the team sheet. While not the pure attacking winger Gasperini sought in summer, he can offer a different answer to that same need, particularly in matches where Roma require additional passing quality and creativity near Dybala and Malen. Pellegrini, who hoped for a longer contract extension, has only a few months to prove himself worthy of both the manager's and the club's faith. After the break, nine matches arrive in twenty-eight days, and Roma cannot always depend on Dybala, Malen or Soulé to produce the decisive moment.

Roma are establishing themselves as genuine Serie A title contenders under Gasperini, combining attacking invention with defensive discipline. The team's recent performance against Inter highlighted both strengths and weaknesses, marking Roma's first win against Inter in five years. Roma have the second-best attack in the league with 14 goals in five matches—only one fewer than Inter—and share the second-best defence alongside Lazio with 3 goals conceded, just one more than Cagliari. The intensity of Roma's play is generating significant fear among opponents, particularly their aggression and hunger. However, a clear pattern has emerged: the gap between strong first-half performances and second-half drop-offs is still pronounced. Physical issues have complicated Gasperini's substitution choices, though this season Roma have been able to maintain performance levels better when rotating the squad—a marked improvement on last season. A particular concern has emerged: goals conceded early in the second half. Lautaro's goal was the third Roma have shipped at the start of the second period after Ederson and Brown in Champions League football, from four goals conceded in total. Gasperini identified presumptuousness as a possible factor, suggesting the team's intensity in first halves may contribute to lapses. "Gasperini has spoken of presumptuousness, which could exist even unconsciously after such high-intensity first halves, but the light must certainly be turned back on immediately, especially to avoid compromising the good work done in the first part of the matches," noted Lorenzo Pes of Il Tempo.

Roma earned their credentials as genuine contenders with a spirited performance against Inter at the Stadio Olimpico, drawing with the defending Serie A champions and demonstrating that the gap between the two sides is far smaller than Inter's status as favourites to repeat their title might suggest. Under Gasperini's command, Roma have shed the inferiority complex that plagued big matches in previous years, now playing against any opponent with the same approach—three attackers and a relentless will to dominate. The coach has reshaped the squad entirely in little over a year, instilling his ideas into every corner of the team. Roma's opening to the season has been emphatic: four straight league wins before the draw with Inter has yielded 13 points from a possible 15. The foundation Gasperini has built addresses Roma's historic weakness in high-stakes fixtures, where they previously lacked the self-belief to compete. That mentality shift is now visible on the pitch, with the team playing with constant aggression and the backing of their home crowd. The next assignment comes at Como on Sunday 11 October at noon, with the league campaign resuming there. As Roma push forward, Gasperini will need to develop a broader pool of starting-calibre players to manage inevitable squad rotation. The club will also be hoping to recover players including Lorenzo Pellegrini and Rodrigo Mora, described as the jewel arrived in the summer but still to be fully refined. According to Simone Valdarchi in Corriere della Sera, the transformation under the coach has been the defining factor in Roma's early success.

Former Roma defender Vincent Candela has backed Gian Piero Gasperini's side as genuine Serie A title contenders, naming them as Inter's only realistic threat in the championship race. Speaking on Rai Radio 1's Radio anch'io sport, Candela analysed the direct clash between Roma and Inter, singling out the performances of Paulo Dybala and Manu Koné for particular praise while assessing the wider squad strength at the Stadio Olimpico. Candela said: "Roma and Inter have given us great football, great beauty. They are the two squads playing for the Scudetto. Inter has a broad squad, but with Gasperini they will fight it out to the end. This Roma is a title-winning team; it can give Inter — who are the strongest — problems. Dybala reminds me of the top players from my era. Koné has personality and charisma. I think Roma is the only squad that can battle with Inter. It has a very strong and cohesive group." Candela also turned his attention to the Italian national team, offering a longer-term view of the rebuilding process. He stated: "Italy is a football heritage. I hope it rebuilds its roots, which were lost for a while. Italy has football in its blood. Mancini has the experience. Now it will take some time because we are starting again from the young players."

Bryan Cristante has withdrawn from Italy's UEFA Nations League camp at Coverciano due to lower-back pain sustained in Roma's Serie A match against Inter. National team coach Roberto Mancini has called up Samuele Ricci as his replacement for the opening four fixtures. Wesley is also unavailable for Brazil's upcoming matches after suffering a right-thigh muscle complaint and will stay at Roma's training ground during the international break, where the medical staff will monitor his recovery ahead of the league's restart. Vanderson takes his place in the squad. Santiago Castro, who remained on the bench throughout Roma's 90-minute encounter with Inter, has used the recovery day granted by Gasperini to undertake individual conditioning work at home, including weights and athletic exercises. Castro is now set to depart for Argentina's national team alongside Leonardo Balerdi and Matías Soulé for friendlies against Bolivia, Burkina Faso and Benin. Radio Radio analyst Stefano Agresti offered his assessment of Roma's performance: "If you win 2–0 in the first half, there's definitely a bitter taste left. Gasperini can be satisfied because Roma played very well, dominated against the best team in Serie A. The Giallorossi were already at their fifth substitution exhausted, because they spent a lot in the first half. There was superficiality on the goal."

Bryan Cristante will not join Italy's national team camp after sustaining a lower back problem in Roma's Serie A match against Inter. The Italian Football Federation confirmed his withdrawal and called up Samuele Ricci of Como as his replacement. Roma identified the issue as lumbalgia, keeping the midfielder sidelined from international duty. Cristante's absence leaves two Roma players in the squad: Gianluca Mancini and Daniele Ghilardi, both of whom remain available for selection. The Italian national team will gather this evening at the Coverciano Technical Centre to begin preparations for the opening four matches of the UEFA Nations League group phase, with the first training session scheduled for tomorrow. The full Italia squad sees goalkeepers Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Massimo Pessina (Bologna) and Guglielmo Vicario (Juventus); a 11-player defence line including the two Roma representatives; midfielders Nicolò Barella (Inter), Issa Doumbia (Sporting CP), Nicolò Fagioli (Fiorentina), Davide Frattesi (Lazio), Rolando Mandragora (Torino), Ricci, Alessandro Romano (Cagliari) and Sandro Tonali (Tottenham); and ten forwards led by Nicolò Zaniolo (Udinese), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta) and Moise Kean (Como).