Wesley and Dimarco: top-level left-flank duel as Roma host Inter

Roma travel to Old Trafford on Tuesday for their fourth league-phase Champions League match against Manchester United, kicking off at 21:00 on Tuesday 3 November. Gian Piero Gasperini's side arrive after a 4-0 win over Slovan Bratislava and have four points from their first three European games. Manchester United, managed by Michael Carrick, sit on three points after a home opening win over Sabah followed by defeats to Atletico Madrid and Como, the last of them a 4-1 loss at Como. Gasperini is expected to keep most of the side that has been settled in recent weeks. Gollini starts in goal, with Svilar not due back until after the international break. Mancini, who was rested at Udinese, is expected to return to the starting line-up alongside Ndicka and Hermoso. Molina and Wesley look ahead of Lulli and Rensch on the flanks. In midfield, Cristante and de Roon offer experience, physicality and balance in a game that will demand attention above all in transitions. The main doubt concerns the position behind the striker, where Mora, who scored against both Cagliari and Udinese, is competing with Pisilli. Soulé and Malen are confirmed; both were managed in the second half of the big win in Friuli with the European fixture in mind. Roma come into the match on a strong run. They beat Udinese 5-2 at the Bluenergy Stadium in the last Serie A round, with goals from Cristante, Mora, Malen and Ndicka, and Ghilardi scored his first league goal of the season in added time. That win lifted Roma to third place with 24 points. Before the trip to Udine they had won 4-2 against Cagliari, drawn 3-3 at Napoli and beaten Slovan Bratislava 4-0. In the Champions League they have collected four points from draws with Fenerbahce and a defeat to Real Madrid, plus the win over the Slovaks. Manchester United are in a much harder spell. On Saturday they lost 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to Chelsea, extending their run of matches without a win to nine. Their European campaign has also stalled. Mancini and Hermoso are the only Roma defenders named in the probable line-up, while United's probable side is built around Bruno Fernandes, with Lammens in goal, Dalot, Maguire, De Ligt and Lisandro Martinez in defence, and Baleba, Andrey Santos, Diallo and Cunha around him. Mbeumo leads the line. Carrick's side are without Ugarte, Šeško, Shaw and Dorgu, while Yoro is suspended. Rashford, Mazraoui and Amad Diallo are doubtful. Lisandro Martinez, sent off against Chelsea in the Premier League, can play in the Champions League because his suspension applies only to domestic competitions. Roma have no fit answer yet for four players. Svilar continues his recovery from a stress fracture to the fifth toe of his left foot, and his return has been put back until after the international break. Dybala will not be risked at Old Trafford after a small calf tear. Koné remains sidelined, and Pellegrini faces a longer absence because of the muscle injury he picked up against Slovan Bratislava. Gasperini can, however, count on Cristante, who is back available on a regular basis and again central to the midfield rotation. The probable Roma line-up is a 3-4-2-1, with a contest between Mancini and Balerdi and a call on Mora against Pisilli. Six official meetings have taken place between Manchester United and Roma in UEFA competitions. United have won four, Roma one, with one draw. Old Trafford brings back two painful nights for Roma: in April 2007 United won 7-1 in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final, and in 2021 they won 6-2 in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final. In the other meeting at Manchester, in the 2007-08 Champions League, the hosts won 1-0. The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sport channels and streamed via Sky Go and NOW. Kick-off is at 21:00 on Tuesday 3 November at Old Trafford. Official line-ups are due about an hour before kick-off and will be updated live.

Roma have scored 28 goals in their first ten Serie A matches, a club record after the 5-2 win at Udinese, beating the previous high of 26. Five different players scored in the win, including two defenders, and the coach Gian Piero Gasperini's side have already turned their attention to the Champions League trip to Manchester United. Roma will not return to the capital. The squad will train in Udine and travel directly to England to prepare for the Champions League fixture at Old Trafford. Mancini could return to the starting line-up from the first minute, while Pisilli is pushing Mora for a place in the attacking midfield area. Svilar, Koné and probably Dybala remain unavailable, and there could be changes for the match against Sassuolo. Manchester United are in crisis, having taken nine matches without a win and collecting just seven points in the Premier League. Michael Carrick, who scored twice in the infamous 7-1 defeat of Roma in 2007, is under pressure, and Tuesday's game against the Giallorossi could be decisive for his future. The Spanish referee Gil Manzano will take charge of Manchester United against Roma on Tuesday evening. Roma drew 1-1 with Fenerbahçe under him, a game marked by refereeing controversy. Del Cerro Grande will be the VAR, with Fernandez as assistant. In Serie A, Lazio came from behind to beat Cagliari 2-1, with goals from Isaksen and Pinamonti, moving up to 28 points. Roma stay third on 24 points, behind Inter as well. Two penalty appeals were turned down at the Olimpico, fuelling debate. Frosinone beat Torino 2-0 in the other afternoon match. Como, coached by Fabregas, beat Venezia 1-0 with a Da Cunha penalty to move to 23 points, one behind Roma, after a spot-kick first awarded to the visitors was overturned by VAR for a handball by Milla. Udinese have sacked Runjaic after a disastrous start, leaving them second from bottom with five points from ten matches. Paolo Zanetti is the leading candidate to replace him, with contacts already under way.

Roma are on an unstoppable run, with a 5-2 away win at Udinese the latest result in a record-setting start under Gian Piero Gasperini this season. The side have scored 28 goals in their first 10 matches, surpassing the 26 scored in 1960/61 and 2016/17. Counting the end of last season, Roma have gone 17 Serie A matches unbeaten, with Gasperini now targeting the 19-match unbeaten run Claudio Ranieri achieved two seasons ago, a mark matched only by the continuous run of Liedholm and Eriksson in 1984 and Andreazzoli and Garcia in 2013. Donyell Malen is outscoring Ballon d'Or winner Harry Kane and is the league's top scorer, but he is not the only source of goals. Roma are flying on the wings of their attacking midfielders, with Mora and Soulé standing out. Everyone is finding the net for Roma, although four heavyweight names are still missing from the scoresheet, including Paulo Dybala. The absence of Dybala and Manu Koné is not a problem: without them, Gasperini's side have almost doubled their points-per-game average. The focus is already shifting to Manchester United, with the club's Champions League campaign now on the horizon. Roma's first league-phase matchday is 8 September 2026, and the squad's form has given the club a strong platform heading into the European fixtures.

Roma left-back Wesley held a live TikTok session from his hotel room in Manchester, appearing in his Giallorossi kit as he chatted with friends around 10pm Italian time. Among those who joined the stream was Luigi Mastroianni, DJ, artist and television personality known for taking part in Uomini e Donne. Mastroianni, astonished, recognised Wesley only a few minutes after he joined the call and exclaimed: "Ti ho preso al Fantacalcio! Ti ho pagato 90 crediti!" ("I picked you in Fantacalcio! I paid 90 credits for you!"). The two then spent several minutes playing on the platform together. Amid the many "Daje Wes" and "Forza Roma" messages, one of the most popular comments was the ironic "Vai a dormire!" ("Go to sleep!"). England is one hour behind Italy, but the time difference was enough to build further anticipation ahead of Roma's Champions League clash against Manchester United on Tuesday. The live session carried on for some time afterwards, with music, conversation and laughter.

Roma travel to Old Trafford on Tuesday for their fourth league-phase Champions League match against Manchester United, kicking off at 21:00 on Tuesday 3 November. Gian Piero Gasperini's side arrive after a 4-0 win over Slovan Bratislava and have four points from their first three European games. Manchester United, managed by Michael Carrick, sit on three points after a home opening win over Sabah followed by defeats to Atletico Madrid and Como, the last of them a 4-1 loss at Como. Gasperini is expected to keep most of the side that has been settled in recent weeks. Gollini starts in goal, with Svilar not due back until after the international break. Mancini, who was rested at Udinese, is expected to return to the starting line-up alongside Ndicka and Hermoso. Molina and Wesley look ahead of Lulli and Rensch on the flanks. In midfield, Cristante and de Roon offer experience, physicality and balance in a game that will demand attention above all in transitions. The main doubt concerns the position behind the striker, where Mora, who scored against both Cagliari and Udinese, is competing with Pisilli. Soulé and Malen are confirmed; both were managed in the second half of the big win in Friuli with the European fixture in mind. Roma come into the match on a strong run. They beat Udinese 5-2 at the Bluenergy Stadium in the last Serie A round, with goals from Cristante, Mora, Malen and Ndicka, and Ghilardi scored his first league goal of the season in added time. That win lifted Roma to third place with 24 points. Before the trip to Udine they had won 4-2 against Cagliari, drawn 3-3 at Napoli and beaten Slovan Bratislava 4-0. In the Champions League they have collected four points from draws with Fenerbahce and a defeat to Real Madrid, plus the win over the Slovaks. Manchester United are in a much harder spell. On Saturday they lost 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to Chelsea, extending their run of matches without a win to nine. Their European campaign has also stalled. Mancini and Hermoso are the only Roma defenders named in the probable line-up, while United's probable side is built around Bruno Fernandes, with Lammens in goal, Dalot, Maguire, De Ligt and Lisandro Martinez in defence, and Baleba, Andrey Santos, Diallo and Cunha around him. Mbeumo leads the line. Carrick's side are without Ugarte, Šeško, Shaw and Dorgu, while Yoro is suspended. Rashford, Mazraoui and Amad Diallo are doubtful. Lisandro Martinez, sent off against Chelsea in the Premier League, can play in the Champions League because his suspension applies only to domestic competitions. Roma have no fit answer yet for four players. Svilar continues his recovery from a stress fracture to the fifth toe of his left foot, and his return has been put back until after the international break. Dybala will not be risked at Old Trafford after a small calf tear. Koné remains sidelined, and Pellegrini faces a longer absence because of the muscle injury he picked up against Slovan Bratislava. Gasperini can, however, count on Cristante, who is back available on a regular basis and again central to the midfield rotation. The probable Roma line-up is a 3-4-2-1, with a contest between Mancini and Balerdi and a call on Mora against Pisilli. Six official meetings have taken place between Manchester United and Roma in UEFA competitions. United have won four, Roma one, with one draw. Old Trafford brings back two painful nights for Roma: in April 2007 United won 7-1 in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final, and in 2021 they won 6-2 in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final. In the other meeting at Manchester, in the 2007-08 Champions League, the hosts won 1-0. The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sport channels and streamed via Sky Go and NOW. Kick-off is at 21:00 on Tuesday 3 November at Old Trafford. Official line-ups are due about an hour before kick-off and will be updated live.

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.