Roma's summer transfer window has shut with a sense of missed opportunity, despite significant investment and a refusal by ownership to sell any key players. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has gone without the attacking winger he identified as his primary objective from the moment of his arrival—a player capable of operating from the left, beating opponents one-on-one, attacking space and destabilising defences. That position remains vacant after two transfer windows and an entire summer of pursuit, leaving the club's offensive department with an evident structural limitation.
Despite clear improvement across the squad, the absence feels particularly acute because it was never a last-minute target or a late opportunity. Gasperini made the request for a left-sided winger his top technical priority. Financial constraints imposed by UEFA's settlement agreement complicated the sporting director Tony D'Amico's work, often forcing Roma to pursue unconventional formulas and abandon deals when demands proved unsustainable. Ownership did maintain the core: Mile Svilar, Evan N'Dicka, Wesley, Donyell Malen and other central project players remained. The squad's overall quality has grown—new players arrived, alternatives were added, and experience, physicality and talent were introduced. Rodrigo Mora, in particular, appears to be a shrewd acquisition: he possesses technique, imagination and the capacity to ignite a match with invention. Yet Mora is a trequartista, a creative force, not the external winger profile Gasperini sought.
A true winger was needed—a player of pace and power, quick and capable of dribbling and attacking depth; someone to alternate with Mora rather than perform the same functions as the Portuguese midfielder. Roma faces a long season across the league, Champions League and Coppa Italia. Proceeding without that solution leaves Gasperini with a clear constraint in building the attacking unit. Uncertainty remains elsewhere too: Paulo Dybala transforms the team's level when fit, yet expecting him to complete an entire season without physical problems would be unrealistic. Lorenzo Pellegrini has returned as a first alternative in the left attack zone but is not a pure attacking winger and has endured complicated months from a physical standpoint. A player with completely different characteristics would have been not merely useful but necessary. The position of vice-Wesley—a left-back offering an alternative solution on that flank—also went unfilled.
Roma gives the sensation of being very close to achieving a genuine quality leap. Early season displays have already hinted at this: the squad is stronger, more solid, more physical and possesses greater quality than before. The Friedkins invested, D'Amico changed much and Gasperini has a squad capable of competing at a high level. But when only the final puzzle piece seemed to be missing, that piece never arrived. The overall quality of the squad has grown and the market cannot be dismissed as negative; yet the most obvious shortfall cannot be hidden. The winger Gasperini awaited has not arrived. After an entire summer pursuing him, Roma closes the market with the unavoidable sense that this team could be even better.
Story Coverage10 sources on this story
Roma's summer transfer window closed on 1 September with the club having failed to secure a left-sided attacking winger—the primary objective identified by head coach Gian Piero Gasperini from his arrival. Despite substantial investment exceeding €100 million and a firm decision to retain all key players including Paulo Dybala, Donyell Malen and Manu Koné, the most pressing tactical need went unfilled. Multiple sources confirm Roma pursued several targets in the final hours without success: Jamie Leweling rejected the club's offer to remain at Stuttgart; Jamie Bynoe-Gittens could not be signed because Chelsea refused to entertain a loan arrangement; and Juan Cabal stayed at Juventus after the Turin club declined to release him without securing their own replacement, reportedly for Nicolás Tagliafico. GialloRossi.net reports that Luiz Henrique from Zenit emerged as a late alternative on loan with a €30 million purchase option, though complications over agent commissions left the deal unclear as the deadline approached.
Roma's recruitment drive saw eight major arrivals including Donyell Malen, Santiago Castro, Nahuel Molina, Konstantinos Koulierakis, Rodrigo Mora, Leonardo Balerdi, Marten de Roon and Daniele Ghilardi. Several departures were confirmed: Neil El Aynaoui joined RB Leipzig on loan with a €25 million purchase option; Robinio Vaz moved to Hull City; Mattia Mannini joined Benevento on loan; and Artem Dovbyk, Zeki Çelik and Angeliño among others departed. Malen has opened the season with five Serie A goals in two matches. However, the squad numbers 20 outfield players, two fewer than Gasperini requested. While radio pundit Roberto Pruzzo urged patience, noting the squad's core strength remains intact, others highlighted the absent winger as a structural limitation that leaves Roma without the creative attacking profile their coach specifically demanded.
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Testo Originale / Source Text
“Scattano le 20, e la fine di questo interminabile calciomercato lascia un retrogusto amaro. Nonostante gli investimenti, nonostante una rosa complessivamente più forte e nonostante la scelta della proprietà di non sacrificare nessuno dei suoi pezzi pregiati, il mercato della Roma sa di occasione…”
Read the full article in Italian at GialloRossi.net.
