Stramaccioni: Roma are extraordinary, gap with Inter has closed and momentum helps

Radio pundits have shared their views on Roma's current form and their upcoming trip against Manchester United. Fabrizio Aspri, speaking on Radio Radio, said Gasperini was surprised by Mora, whose wish had been to change Roma and make them attractive out wide. Aspri said Mora is becoming very important, but added that Gasperini wants a left-footed winger for January and also lacks a midfielder. "Roma are performing miracles because they are strong, but they need something else," Aspri said. He rated Mora's performances as very positive, but said Gasperini does not want this for January. "You cannot play without Cristante in midfield," he added. Aspri said he would take a draw against Manchester United, provided the team knew it was doing well. He voiced doubts about Ghilardi, saying he would wait a little longer as the defender still has to mature more than the others. He also described Gasperini as a manager who rations energy. Andrea Pugliese, also on Radio Radio, was more positive about the club's prospects. He said Ghilardi is becoming very important and is growing with every match. Pugliese noted that Gasperini always selects Cristante and then the other ten outfield players. He said Cristante has earned the trust of the coach over the years and is a fundamental player for the team's balance. Pugliese described Manchester United as a side in disarray. "It will be a difficult match, but it is not a prohibitive trip, because the emotional states are completely different and everyone is leaning towards Roma," he said. The views were gathered as part of Romanews.eu's daily column reviewing comments from Rome radio speakers and pundits on Roma.

Roma are being urged to exploit Udinese's current form, with Nando Orsi calling the visitors the weakest Udinese side in recent years after five straight defeats. Orsi said: 'Udinese come into this on five defeats, lost deservedly: this is the worst Udinese of recent years. Roma must take advantage. I'm sorry, because Udinese are a tough side, but Roma cannot waste this game.' Roberto Pruzzo noted that Inter have not won a derby in seven matches, saying Roma could move a little closer to the top of the table. He warned that the match should not become too physical, as that could make things complicated against Udinese, and said Roma should rely on technique and quality. Pruzzo also suggested playing Niccolò Pisilli, saying: 'He adapts to everything, he has to play.' Ugo Trani expects Gasperini to rotate mainly in defence, noting that the coach can only change those players. Ghilardi and Hermoso will play for certain, as will Wesley and Cristante. Trani believes Roma will line up with two attacking midfielders today. On the transfer market, he said Njie has shots and incredible pace but lacks the head for the game, adding that Roma followed him last summer before Fiorentina signed him. He described Lang as someone who 'breaks games' open. On Endrick, Trani said Roma will try to bring him in one way or another, though Arsenal's interest would make it more complicated, while he would certainly find more space in Rome. Trani also highlighted that Balde earns 5.5 million at Barcelona, and that Roma could try in January, paying less than two million in wages for six months. He added that Roma will take two strikers regardless. On the Udinese game, he said: 'The match against Udinese is very heavy, which is why I don't trust it. I wouldn't feel comfortable even at 11 against 9... Dybala is missing in these games.'

Radio pundits across Rome's airwaves have made Roma's home clash with Udinese a must-win fixture, with several arguing that a victory would allow the club to push on in a manageable run of fixtures. Carina, speaking on Radio Radio, said: "On paper it is a round that should help the two Roman clubs. I am convinced Milan can win this derby. Udinese are a big unknown: last year Roma played a bad game, and if Udinese manage to produce a match like that, Roma can run into difficulties. Malen is incredible: he scores a goal a game. Roma were "Svilar-dependent", this year that is not the case, they score a lot. It is a more "Gasperinian" side than last year's and it is bearing fruit. What surprises me is not so much the play as the number of injuries. It would surprise me to see De Roon start, because against Cagliari he seemed tired to me. It seems to me a game to play with two behind Malen. This is a game Roma must win: if they win today, they have an affordable schedule and can push on emphatically." Sabatini, also on Radio Radio, said Udinese are going through a negative period. "Seeing them rack up five or six defeats seems an anomaly to me for a side that is not destined for last place. Roma have every chance of winning, but beware: Udinese can wake up." Pruzzo, on the same station, said Roma's game is within reach and could help them move closer to the top, noting that Inter have not won the derby in seven matches. He added that Pisilli adapts to anything and must play, and that the team seems capable of a less physical game: "If you get into a physical battle with them it can become complicated. You have to focus on technique and quality." Orsi, also on Radio Radio, said: "Udinese come off five defeats, and they lost them deservedly: this is the worst Udinese of recent years. Roma must take advantage. I am sorry, because Udinese are a tough side, but Roma cannot waste this match."

Roma have gone five matches without Manu Koné and Paulo Dybala and have collected 13 points in that stretch, a record that shows the squad's depth under Gasperini. Bryan Cristante was also briefly absent, and the club have coped with the losses of several key players. The article notes that Pisilli, de Roon, Rodrigo Mora, Pellegrini and Castro started on the bench at times against the most reliable opponents, which it describes as a fact that applies to every team in the world. Gasperini has insisted that "they are all starters". Even with several important names unavailable, Roma have kept their level high. Koné and Dybala are described as perhaps the two best players in the squad alongside Svilar and Malen. Last season, the French and Argentine midfielder and forward were both missing together in 9 matches across Serie A and the Europa League, and Roma collected 13 points from 3 wins, 4 draws and 2 defeats. As of Sunday 1 November, the five matches without the pair have yielded 13 points against Genoa, Napoli, Cagliari, Udinese and Slovan Bratislava. That is an average of 2.6 points per game, compared with 1.44 in the earlier spell. Cristante was also out in two of those five games. Svilar has missed seven matches, and his injury marks the last time Roma fielded their full first-choice side, on 19 September, a 2-2 draw with Inter. The article credits the squad's improved maturity and quality, partly due to the summer work of D'Amico. It describes Pisilli as having a year more experience, de Roon as a professor with a titanium physique, and Soulé as back at top level. Rodrigo Mora is raising his standard, Gollini has regained confidence in his role after a long spell without playing, Lulli is a "terrible" young talent, and Balerdi often looks like a gladiator. The overall level of the team has risen considerably. After the international break, Gasperini is expected to have all his players available for the trip to Parma.

Donyell Malen's scoring run continues, with his goal on Sunday taking him to 22 in 27 matches, more than any other player in the top five European leagues and ahead of Harry Kane, the newly crowned Ballon d'Or winner. Yet Roma's 24 points from 10 matches owe more than that to the Dutchman alone, as he has failed to score in five of the club's league games, roughly half of them. Others have stepped up, including players Gasperini and others had expected more from compared with last season, and the coach has been satisfied so far. The two starters on Sunday, Rodrigo Mora and Matías Soulé, were central to the win. Mora, who is Portuguese and a former Porto youngster, scored his first goal while starting a match and has been taking on an increasingly important role. In 59 minutes he completed 85% of his passes, won back 6 balls, created a big chance and completed 100% of his dribbles. Those numbers, together with two goals in five days, are clear signs of growth that is pleasing everyone, especially with Paulo Dybala currently out. Soulé has done the most to drive the team forward, returning from the physical problems that had limited him for months. The difference is clear: the Argentine has been involved in 8 goals in 13 matches, with 3 goals and 5 assists, while Malen has been involved in 14 goals overall. With Ndicka and Ghilardi, 14 different players have now scored since the start of the season, a true goalscoring cooperative. Some heavyweight names are still missing from the scoresheet, including Wesley, Mancini, Pellegrini and above all Dybala. Even so, all of these players, each in his own role, have a clear feel for goal, and that will only add to the firepower of a Roma side full of scorers.

Roma have scored 28 goals in their first ten Serie A matches of 2026-27, a new club record for the competition that eclipses the 26 scored in the opening ten rounds of 1960/61 and 2016/17. The record came after a 5-0 win away at Udinese, the most recent game, and no Roma side had scored more in that early stretch of a league season. The average is 2.8 goals per match, a pace that, projected over the whole campaign, would mean more than 100 goals. The article stresses that this is a simple mathematical projection, but it shows the scale of the change under Gian Piero Gasperini. The record has come despite a run of closely spaced fixtures and heavy absences, starting with Paulo Dybala and Manu Koné. Donyell Malen remains the most recognisable name in attack, with his ability to run in behind, move constantly and turn harmless-looking balls into chances. However, the article argues that focusing on his goals misses the real secret of this Roma side. Gasperini has built a team in which scoring is no longer the responsibility of the strikers alone. It has become a collective task, open to anyone who can find the right space. The clearest example came in Udine, where five different players scored: Bryan Cristante, Mora, Malen, Evan N'Dicka and Daniele Ghilardi. A midfielder, an attacking midfielder, a striker and two defenders, each scoring in a different way, from close-range finishing and runs into the box to a header and a quick, constructed move. The article notes that this was not an isolated case, as Pisilli, Lulli, Soulé, Koné and Balerdi had also scored in the preceding weeks. Roma score so often, it says, because they get many players into the decisive areas of the pitch. Gasperini underlined the point after the Udinese game: "We are scoring more goals and with more players. This is a great sign." The coach has identified the growing confidence of the group as one of the main reasons for this development. Scoring is not only a matter of technique or systems but also of conviction. When a player starts to believe he can be decisive, the way he attacks the box, looks for a shot and takes responsibility changes. The article also highlights the progress of players who until a few weeks ago looked like simple alternatives. Mora has started to find more consistency in front of goal, Ghilardi is becoming a useful option from set pieces, and Cristante, against Udinese, produced an outstanding performance, combining a goal with an assist. The rotations, the article says, are not weakening the attacking play but multiplying the solutions available to the coach. The article is not blind to the defensive side. Roma have already conceded ten goals in Serie A and, in recent matches, have shown some lapses in concentration that could prove costly against stronger opponents. The definitive step up, it argues, will also depend on the ability to keep balance when the team attacks with many players, an aspect Gasperini knows well and on which he will have to keep working. The piece concludes that the 28 goals in ten matches, a historic record, show a side that finds the net with remarkable ease and a group in which individual talent is enhanced by an increasingly recognisable collective identity. Its closing line suggests that the true record may be building a Roma in which everyone feels capable of scoring.

Roma have gone five matches without Manu Koné and Paulo Dybala and have collected 13 points in that stretch, a record that shows the squad's depth under Gasperini. Bryan Cristante was also briefly absent, and the club have coped with the losses of several key players. The article notes that Pisilli, de Roon, Rodrigo Mora, Pellegrini and Castro started on the bench at times against the most reliable opponents, which it describes as a fact that applies to every team in the world. Gasperini has insisted that "they are all starters". Even with several important names unavailable, Roma have kept their level high. Koné and Dybala are described as perhaps the two best players in the squad alongside Svilar and Malen. Last season, the French and Argentine midfielder and forward were both missing together in 9 matches across Serie A and the Europa League, and Roma collected 13 points from 3 wins, 4 draws and 2 defeats. As of Sunday 1 November, the five matches without the pair have yielded 13 points against Genoa, Napoli, Cagliari, Udinese and Slovan Bratislava. That is an average of 2.6 points per game, compared with 1.44 in the earlier spell. Cristante was also out in two of those five games. Svilar has missed seven matches, and his injury marks the last time Roma fielded their full first-choice side, on 19 September, a 2-2 draw with Inter. The article credits the squad's improved maturity and quality, partly due to the summer work of D'Amico. It describes Pisilli as having a year more experience, de Roon as a professor with a titanium physique, and Soulé as back at top level. Rodrigo Mora is raising his standard, Gollini has regained confidence in his role after a long spell without playing, Lulli is a "terrible" young talent, and Balerdi often looks like a gladiator. The overall level of the team has risen considerably. After the international break, Gasperini is expected to have all his players available for the trip to Parma.

Roma's 5-2 win at Udine is more than another victory for Gian Piero Gasperini's side, with the numbers showing a team that is growing and remarkably consistent. After ten matchday rounds, Roma have scored 28 goals, the best attack in Serie A, and have a goal difference of +18. Their last league defeat came as far back as last April, away to Inter. Against the same opponents they faced last season, Roma have also collected seven more points. ForzaRoma.info highlights one of the most significant statistics: 14 different players have already scored. Donyell Malen remains the standout, reaching 11 goals in 12 appearances and 811 minutes played across the league and cup competitions. Roma effectively settled the match in the first half, going into the interval 4-0 up at the Bluenergy Stadium. That control allowed them to drop the tempo after the break, perhaps too much. Goals from Zaniolo and Palma did irritate Gasperini, especially when Unai Gomez came close to making it 3-4. After several counterattacks went unexploited, Ghilardi sealed the result deep into stoppage time, scoring his first goal in the giallorossi shirt. Gasperini said: "Mi rivedo completamente nei concetti di gioco della mia squadra. Questo è un gruppo fantastico che ha grande voglia di migliorarsi." Roma's next test is a significant step up: Manchester United at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening.

Donyell Malen's scoring run continues, with his goal on Sunday taking him to 22 in 27 matches, more than any other player in the top five European leagues and ahead of Harry Kane, the newly crowned Ballon d'Or winner. Yet Roma's 24 points from 10 matches owe more than that to the Dutchman alone, as he has failed to score in five of the club's league games, roughly half of them. Others have stepped up, including players Gasperini and others had expected more from compared with last season, and the coach has been satisfied so far. The two starters on Sunday, Rodrigo Mora and Matías Soulé, were central to the win. Mora, who is Portuguese and a former Porto youngster, scored his first goal while starting a match and has been taking on an increasingly important role. In 59 minutes he completed 85% of his passes, won back 6 balls, created a big chance and completed 100% of his dribbles. Those numbers, together with two goals in five days, are clear signs of growth that is pleasing everyone, especially with Paulo Dybala currently out. Soulé has done the most to drive the team forward, returning from the physical problems that had limited him for months. The difference is clear: the Argentine has been involved in 8 goals in 13 matches, with 3 goals and 5 assists, while Malen has been involved in 14 goals overall. With Ndicka and Ghilardi, 14 different players have now scored since the start of the season, a true goalscoring cooperative. Some heavyweight names are still missing from the scoresheet, including Wesley, Mancini, Pellegrini and above all Dybala. Even so, all of these players, each in his own role, have a clear feel for goal, and that will only add to the firepower of a Roma side full of scorers.