Wesley marks a year as Roma cornerstone after star display in Cannes test

Gian Piero Gasperini has announced his squad for Roma's Champions League return at Fenerbahçe on 10 September at 18:45. Lorenzo Pellegrini is the only absentee from the travelling party to Istanbul but is expected to be available for Roma's Serie A match against Torino on Monday. Otherwise Gasperini has the full group at his disposal, including Devyne Rensch, and can select from: Goalkeepers Mile Svilar, Giorgio De Marzi and Pierluigi Gollini. Defenders Devyne Rensch, Konstantinos Koulierakis, Evan N'Dicka, Nahuel Molina, Mario Hermoso, Gianluca Mancini, Leonardo Balerdi, Wesley, Emanuele Lulli and Daniele Ghilardi. Midfielders Bryan Cristante, Marten de Roon, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli and Rodrigo Mora. Forwards Santiago Castro, Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé and Paulo Dybala.

Maresca has been appointed to referee Roma's Serie A fixture against Torino on Monday at 18:30. Tegoni and Fontani will serve as assistant referees, Sozza as fourth official, and Aureliano at VAR. Maresca has nineteen previous matches involving Roma, with a record of 8 wins, 5 draws and 6 defeats for the Giallorossi—a slight advantage but marked by several controversies. His last Roma appointment came on 17 May last season, when Roma won the Derby della Capitale with a brace from Mancini.

Maresca will take charge of Torino's Serie A match against Roma on Monday 14 September at 18:30, kick-off time 18:30. The fixture is the fourth round of the league campaign. Maresca will be assisted by Tegoni and Fontani, with Sozza as fourth official. Aureliano will operate as VAR, and Ghersini as AVAR. The full set of match officials for the upcoming round of Serie A fixtures has been confirmed. Across the weekend's ten matches, spanning Friday 11 September through Monday 14 September, a complete slate of referees, assistants and video review officials have been named. Lazio play Milan on Saturday 12 September at 18:00, with Marcenaro in charge, while Juventus travel to Sassuolo on Sunday 13 September at 20:45 under Sacchi. Inter face Udinese on Monday 14 September at 20:45 with Pairetto as referee. Other notable appointments include Fourneau for Venezia v Fiorentina on Friday 11 September at 20:45; Rapuano for Genoa v Frosinone on Saturday 12 September at 15:00; Crezzini for Lecce v Monza on Sunday 13 September at 15:00; Bonacina for Napoli v Bologna on Sunday 13 September at 18:00; Mucera for Como v Parma on Monday 14 September at 18:30; and Arena for Atalanta v Cagliari on Saturday 12 September at 20:45.

Gian Piero Gasperini has announced his squad for Roma's Champions League return at Fenerbahçe on 10 September at 18:45. Lorenzo Pellegrini is the only absentee from the travelling party to Istanbul but is expected to be available for Roma's Serie A match against Torino on Monday. Otherwise Gasperini has the full group at his disposal, including Devyne Rensch, and can select from: Goalkeepers Mile Svilar, Giorgio De Marzi and Pierluigi Gollini. Defenders Devyne Rensch, Konstantinos Koulierakis, Evan N'Dicka, Nahuel Molina, Mario Hermoso, Gianluca Mancini, Leonardo Balerdi, Wesley, Emanuele Lulli and Daniele Ghilardi. Midfielders Bryan Cristante, Marten de Roon, Manu Koné, Niccolò Pisilli and Rodrigo Mora. Forwards Santiago Castro, Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé and Paulo Dybala.

Roma will line up against Fenerbahce on 10 September using the tactical system Gian Piero Gasperini has favoured since pre-season: a central playmaker operating behind two mobile strikers, rather than two wide attacking midfielders. The formation is designed specifically to disrupt Fenerbahce's build-up play. Ismail Kartal's side typically deploy a 4-2-3-1, which leaves a deep-lying regulator vulnerable in the opening phase; Roma aim to press that regulator and rapidly flood the opposition half once possession is won. This approach proved effective against Fiorentina, Lecce, and Atalanta in the early league matches. The key tactical uncertainty centres on who plays as the central playmaker. Rodrigo Mora naturally favours the role, receiving the ball inside the pitch and immediately seeking a vertical pass. Matías Soulé, deployed from the same position, tends to drift right where he finds his preferred angles and space. However, after scoring decisively against Atalanta, the Argentine appears to have gained ground and could start ahead of the Portuguese midfielder. Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen are expected to lead the attack; Gasperini has made clear he will not "preserve" Dybala when he is fit, and Dybala is keen to return to Champions League football after a five-year absence. Malen has started the season strongly as a primary attacking reference. On the flanks, Roma are likely to employ the successful approach used against Atalanta: overloading the right to draw pressure and freeing space on the left, where Bryan Cristante launches switches to Wesley. Wesley will be asked to push high and operate almost as an extra attacker during periods of possession in the opposition half. Nahuel Molina's candidacy for the right-back slot has grown after a positive appearance against Atalanta; his international experience may see him preferred to Emanuele Lulli in the starting eleven, though Lulli has delivered solid performances. Leonardo Balerdi, who impressed on Saturday, is in contention at centre-back, though Evan N'Dicka remains the favourite. The expected base formation will see Mile Svilar in goal, Gianluca Mancini, N'Dicka, and Konstantinos Koulierakis in defence, with Molina and Wesley as full-backs, Cristante and Manu Koné in midfield, and either Soulé or Mora supporting Dybala and Malen. Gasperini intends minimal rotation and continuity in identity: high pressure, aggressive spatial occupation, and numerous players advancing into the opposition half.

Roma return to the Champions League for the first time since March 2019 when they visit Fenerbahce on 10 September at 18:45, a match that carries far more than ceremonial significance despite the seven-and-a-half-year absence from the competition. Gian Piero Gasperini's side will face Real Madrid, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain across the eight-match league phase, alongside Sporting, Slovan Bratislava, AEK and Lille. Istanbul falls into the category of fixture where Roma cannot afford to drop points if they are to build a path to qualification: it is a complicated away trip against a fierce opponent of genuine quality, but one where the club must arrive with ambition rather than damage limitation. Gasperini is expected to keep his lineup largely unchanged, with Dybala, Malen, Koné, Mancini and Wesley forming the core of the team and only minimal adjustments under consideration. The return to Champions League football will not be treated as an experimental laboratory but as Roma's first genuine international test at this level. The squad that plays in Istanbul is almost entirely different from the one that faced Porto in Roma's last Champions League match seven years ago; only Cristante and Pellegrini remain from that night. The fixture carries additional narrative weight: Romelu Lukaku, who played alongside Dybala in Roma's attack, and Mason Greenwood—the player Roma pursued throughout the summer transfer window before his move to Fenerbahce—will play on the opposite side. For Dybala, it marks a return to the Champions League stage after five years away; for Roma as a club, it represents a test of whether a squad built to compete at this level can deliver when the stage and intensity demand it.