Evan Ferguson

Santiago Castro entered Roma's match against Atalanta at the 62nd minute as an unlikely substitute, replacing the league's in-form forward Donyell Malen, yet the move proved to be the turning point in a game the hosts trailed. In his brief appearance, Castro struck the post and crossbar while providing two key passes, underscoring the quality of Roma's bench and prompting head coach Gian Piero Gasperini to praise his aggression. The Argentine's introduction illustrated the gulf between Roma's attacking depth now and the crisis that plagued them throughout the previous season. Last season Gasperini struggled with inadequate backup at centre-forward. Artem Dovbyk managed only 386 minutes in the league, while Evan Ferguson accumulated 776; injuries to both forced the coach into makeshift solutions, sometimes fielding a lone striker. Malen's January arrival from Dortmund transformed the dynamic, yet even then Gasperini was stretched thin managing the Dutchman's workload in a frenetic system that demands fresh energy. Castro's arrival this summer completes the picture. The forward combines goal-scoring instinct, the ability to run channels, ball retention and defensive work rate—qualities already evident in his early outings in red and gold. Gasperini's post-match verdict captured the shift: "The changes were good and that's what we were looking for—to complete this squad with substitutes who could give important help across matches. In finishing and in the forward area we were good, but we lacked intensity. We were sometimes too neat, aside from Castro's post and crossbar." Against Atalanta, Castro fired four shots—two on target and two off the woodwork—laying down a marker as a genuine alternative to Malen. Soulé scored, Molina offered fresh options on the flank and Balerdi commanded the defence like a squad veteran. Gasperini acknowledged the possibility of using both attackers together: "Castro and Malen together? It's an idea for the future. They can coexist, definitely. They can play together. We'll see; we're doing evaluations now. We'll have many matches so there will be chances for everyone and also to vary these systems." The contrast with previous seasons is stark. Roma's manager can now turn to a bench and find genuine competition for the starting eleven rather than, as José Mourinho once lamented, mere children. The scale of available rotation across the squad—particularly in attack and defence—represents a luxury rarely seen at Trigoria in recent years.

Roma's summer transfer window has closed with six new arrivals for Gian Piero Gasperini: Balerdi, Koulierakis, Molina, de Roon, Rodrigo Mora and Castro. The club also secured permanent deals for Ghilardi and Malen, and renewed contracts for Pellegrini and Dybala. However, Gasperini was unable to add a left-back or left winger, with moves for Cabal, Leweling and Gittens falling through on the final day of the market. Between 1 July and 1 September, Roma allowed 14 players to depart: Zelezny, Kumbulla, Ziolkowski, Angelino, Mannini, Reale, Sangare, Saud, El Aynaoui, Pagano, Romano, Cherubini, Dovbyk and Vaz. Celik and El Shaarawy departed at the end of their contracts, while Tsimikas and Ferguson's loans from last season concluded. The club retained key assets Soulé and Koné, avoiding any major sales.

Donyell Malen has become a revelation for Roma since his arrival, scoring five goals in the first two Serie A matches of the 2026-27 season. The Dutch forward has completely transformed the club's attacking play, combining prolific finishing with an ability to create for teammates. In yesterday's fixture against Lecce, Soulé and Rodrigo Mora also found the net—Mora notably scoring after managing just one league goal throughout the previous season under Farioli. Roma have already struck eight goals across their opening two matches, a dramatic acceleration compared to last season when head coach Gian Piero Gasperini's side required until 26 October, the eighth matchday, to reach that same tally. Only against Fiorentina and Verona last season had Roma scored twice in a single league match. The contrast with the previous year's attacking output is stark. The pairing of Artem Dovbyk and Evan Ferguson last season yielded just six goals combined in Serie A, while Malen has already reached five in two games. The attacking unit is set to strengthen further once Paulo Dybala and Santiago Castro return to full availability, and Roma are also pursuing an additional forward signing before the close of the transfer window.

Gian Piero Gasperini will return to Lecce on 31 August having twice visited the Via del Mare in circumstances that left deep frustration. On both occasions—after Roma victories at Lecce and later at the Olimpico—Gasperini skipped the post-match press conferences, his silence masking mounting tensions over the club's transfer activity and squad injuries. The January 2025 visit came during a transfer window when Roma desperately sought a striker; Evan Ferguson scored in a 2–0 win but suffered an ankle injury weeks later, while Artem Dovbyk also scored before injury forced him to undergo surgery. Gasperini's frustration centred on sporting director Massara, whom he felt was moving too slowly in the market, particularly in securing a left winger with a right foot—a need that persists to this day. The tensions that erupted at Lecce deepened significantly after Roma travelled to Turin. Claudio Ranieri was appointed to stabilize the situation, but the arrival of another authority figure widened the rift rather than healed it. Massara and then Ranieri departed; Gasperini ultimately secured the head coach position. The squad then delivered an exceptional run of form that culminated in third place and qualification for the Champions League. The manager's mood has improved substantially since those turbulent January weeks. According to reporting by Alessandro Angeloni in Il Messaggero, Gasperini overturned tables at the Via del Mare in his rage and blamed Massara for the slow pace of business. Donyell Malen's arrival in the winter window proved transformative, helping to spark the turnaround. Roma arrive in Lecce having rebuilt their trajectory and secured European football at the continent's highest level.

Neil El Aynaoui is poised to leave Roma after just one season, with Crystal Palace having tabled an opening offer structured as a loan with a right of purchase that would convert to an obligation under certain conditions. Roma value the midfielder at €30–35 million and are seeking either a permanent sale or a guaranteed obligation to buy, neither of which Crystal Palace's initial proposal meets. Bayer Leverkusen has also shown interest, while Saudi Arabian clubs registered prior enquiries. El Aynaoui's potential departure would mark the near-complete dismantling of the squad built last summer by director of football Frédéric Massara under the supervision of head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. Bought from Lens a year ago for €23 million plus €2 million in bonuses, El Aynaoui was among Massara's primary investments in summer 2025 and arrived following protracted negotiations for Richard Rios, whom Gasperini had identified as a target midfielder. Yet twelve months on, he has failed to establish himself as a central figure in Roma's project. Of the eight main signings Massara made that summer—El Aynaoui, Wesley, Ghilardi, Evan Ferguson, Bailey, Jan Ziółkowski, Vasquez and Zelezny, plus further arrivals during the season including Robinio Vaz and Donyell Malen in January—almost none remain integrated into the first-team plan. Bailey departed in January; Ferguson and Kostas Tsimikas have returned to their parent clubs; Zaragoza, Venturino and Zelezny have left; Ziółkowski is bound for Monza; and Robinio Vaz is joining Hull City on a paid loan with a purchase option. Only Wesley and Malen have endured as meaningful squad members—notably, both were explicitly endorsed by Gasperini himself. The wholesale reversal reflects a fundamental disconnect between Massara's construction and Gasperini's tactical requirements. The head coach arrived with precise ideas about player profiles: intensity, one-on-one strength, athletic capability, aggression, willingness to defend in open play, and specific positional characteristics. Much of Massara's market activity, the article suggests, proceeded on different criteria. El Aynaoui, aged 25 with international appeal and genuine quality—hardly a failed signing on financial grounds—has attracted bids from Champions League and Bundesliga clubs yet appears expendable to Roma's current thinking. A sale at €30–35 million would recoup the initial investment while generating profit useful for UEFA financial compliance, and would free capital to invest in a midfielder Roma believes better suited to Gasperini's system alongside an attacking winger the head coach has requested for weeks. Roma has already absorbed a year of transfer misalignment and is now attempting correction. Should El Aynaoui depart, Wesley and Malen will stand as the last substantial survivors of Massara's legacy—both players explicitly favoured by Gasperini. The club cannot afford further directional error; Tony D'Amico must construct a roster that is recognisable, coherent and durable, avoiding a return to similar discussions in August 2027 regarding the summer 2026 window.

Roma's final weeks of the summer transfer window will see not only the completion of Gian Piero Gasperini's squad but also a profound transformation of the group built in previous sessions—a wholesale dismantling of the roster assembled under former sporting director Florent Ghisolfi and Ricky Massara. Defender Jan Ziółkowski is poised to leave. The Polish centre-back has opened talks over a move to Monza, who are ready to pay approximately €1.2 million for a paid loan. Details of the buyout clause remain to be finalised, though one proposal links the cost of the loan to Ziółkowski's appearances—the more he plays, the lower the fee for Monza. Roma will not greenlight his departure until a replacement arrives. The primary target is Morato, a Brazilian centre-back at Nottingham Forest, with negotiations centred on a loan formula, though no agreement has yet been reached between the clubs. Thilo Kehrer of Monaco has also been evaluated as an alternative, as has Nayef Aguerd, the 1996-born Moroccan defender at Marseille, in a potential loan deal. More delicate is the situation of Neil El Aynaoui. The Moroccan midfielder has failed to build the tactical understanding with Gasperini required to become a cornerstone of the project, and Roma are ready to let him go after just one season if the right offer arrives. However, proposals from Germany so far have been structured only as loans with buyout clauses, while Trigoria prefers an outright sale. El Aynaoui's departure would force Roma to return to the market. Gasperini had identified Franck Kessié as his target, but the Ivorian is now close to joining Juventus, leaving Roma to find an alternative quickly. Ziółkowski and El Aynaoui could join a lengthy list of players who arrived under Ghisolfi and Massara but have since exited the project: Bailey, Ferguson, Tsimikas, Venturino and Zaragoza are cited, while Robinio Vaz is close to Hull City, with an agreement between the clubs pending the player's approval. The transformation reflects Gasperini's tactical preferences and the new sporting direction's priorities.