Wesley on Roma breakthrough: 'Proud to compete with elite players'

Roma spent the penultimate day of their United Kingdom pre-season tour in transit to Brighton on 7 August, departing Vale Resort after a final training session in the morning before flying to London at 18:00 and travelling by coach to the south coast. Brighton's official social media channels welcomed the Giallorossi with a video set to Lando Fiorini's 'Forza Roma', the club's anthem. Paulo Dybala and his teammates arrived at the Maldron Hotel in the evening, where they stayed overnight ahead of tomorrow's friendly. The fixture against Brighton takes place at the Amex Stadium at 16:00 Italian time on 8 August, marking the first meeting between the sides since their Europa League encounter two years ago. Roma will return to the capital immediately after the match, with training resuming on Tuesday. The club's pre-season schedule concludes with a final test against Borussia Dortmund on 15 August before the Serie A season opener on 24 August against Fiorentina at the Olimpico.

AS Roma concluded their time at the Vale Resort in Wales on 7 August, with the squad departing for Brighton as their pre-season tour in the United Kingdom entered its final stages. The players completed their last training session in the morning before flying to London at 18:00 and travelling by coach to Brighton. The CEO was present for the transfer to the south coast. Roma are in the closing days of their UK tour ahead of the 2026–27 season under head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. The club has been active in the transfer market this summer, and the journey to Brighton marks a key moment in their preparations for the new campaign. The pre-season schedule reflects the club's commitment to building match fitness and tactical cohesion ahead of the competitive fixtures to come.

Roma completed their journey to Brighton on 7 August, ending their pre-season training camp in Wales and relocating to England ahead of a friendly fixture at the American Express Stadium on 8 August. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini led the squad to the south-coast club, accompanied by newly appointed CEO John Galantic. The trip marks the final stage of Roma's summer preparation before the 2026–27 season. The club had previously held their training retreat at Vale Resort in Hensol, Wales, before moving to Brighton to conclude their warm-up schedule in the United Kingdom.

Luca Gotti, the former Udinese coach who developed Nahuel Molina, has backed Roma's pursuit of the Argentina international as an ideal recruit for Giampiero Gasperini's system. Speaking on Radio Manà Manà, Gotti praised Molina's trajectory since arriving in Italy in 2020 as an unknown quantity from Boca Juniors: "His path at Udine was so devastating that in his first year Argentina observers like Scaloni and Walter Samuel would often attend our matches to watch De Paul and Musso. They noticed Molina and convoked him in March to the national team. From there his career turned: today we speak of a World Champion, two-time Copa América winner, with important baggage matured in Madrid." Gotti believes Molina's pace, reactivity and high tempo suit Gasperini's demands perfectly, particularly in a five-defender setup that will unleash his attacking instincts. With Wesley and Devyne Rensch also competing for the right-back role, Gotti expects Wesley to shift to the left flank if needed, positioning Molina as the primary option on the right. Molina's understanding with Paulo Dybala should develop naturally given his experience linking play at international level. On character, Gotti described him as "a fantastic lad, calm and very sunny." However, he identified one area for refinement: "If there's a defect, it's that he can sometimes be lightweight or superficial inside his own penalty area. He still lacks a touch of attention in preventive reading inside the final sixteen metres. Yet Molina possesses the hardest qualities to teach already; attention and care in the defensive phase are aspects that, with daily work and experience, a master like Gasperini will easily complete."

Roma will face Brighton in a pre-season friendly at the American Express Stadium on 8 August 2026 at 16:00 Italian time. The match comes after Roma's training camp in Wales and friendlies against Cardiff and Newport County. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini is expected to field a 3-4-2-1 formation with Mile Svilar in goal, a back three of Gianluca Mancini, Evan N'Dicka, and Mario Hermoso, midfielders Devyne Rensch, Neil El Aynaoui, Bryan Cristante, and Wesley, with Paulo Dybala and Matías Soulé in attacking roles behind striker Donyell Malen. Tickets for the fixture are available through Brighton's official website. The friendly will be broadcast live on DAZN, with live text coverage available on ilromanista.eu and radio commentary from Radio Romanista providing real-time updates from the stadium.

Roma are poised to complete the signing of Nahuel Molina from Atlético Madrid as their third summer acquisition, following Castro and Koulierakis. The Argentine right-back's arrival will close the gap left by Zeki Çelik's departure to Juventus and pair him with Wesley on the left flank as Gasperini builds an attacking wide setup centred on dribbling and goalscoring from the wings. Molina represents a significant offensive upgrade on Çelik. The 2022 World Cup winner produced 9 goals and 16 assists across his final four La Liga seasons and posted a 55.6% successful dribbling rate and 41.7% long-ball completion rate in his last campaign. This contrasts sharply with Çelik's output of 1 goal, 2 assists and 0.4 crosses per 90 minutes, along with a 22% dribbling success rate last season. Wesley, meanwhile, has established himself as the undisputed left-back, contributing 5 goals and 0 assists (though expected assists data reads 3.73) with numerous driblings and won duels. Devyne Rensch currently serves as the only backup option across both flanks. Gasperini is pursuing additional depth—reportedly Torino's Cacciamani, a 2007-born prospect and one of Italian football's most promising young talents, or another external alternative. Torino president Cairo has expressed reluctance to sell Cacciamani, but the right financial offer could persuade him, particularly given Cacciamani's prior experience under Abate at Juve Stabia in Serie B.