Niccolò Pisilli

Roma's radio stations have given their verdicts on Saturday's victory over Atalanta, with commentators split between praising the performance and assessing the squad's depth ahead of the Champions League debut on Thursday. Piero Torri of Radio Manà Manà said: "For now Roma are on full points alongside Inter, and these are certainly positive responses. From now until December it will all be a question of injuries: if Roma are not hit by injuries, their squad is sufficient. In any case, Pisilli and Rensch remained on the bench on Saturday, then Pellegrini will return. Without excessive problems, then, the squad is sufficient; in January you can possibly fine-tune something at a quantitative level. In any case, you have 21 players, and good ones too: if you put them on the pitch you don't have a collapse in quality." Torri added that when a team functions well, a player rated 6 can look like an 8. Francesco Balzani highlighted Balerdi's impact as a substitute, calling it "decisive" and praising the victory as "a win in the Mourinho style with Gasperini's football." Antonio Felici stressed that the win over Atalanta showed Roma can succeed even when facing difficulty in the 90 minutes, representing "the victory of self-awareness." Simone Valdarchi echoed the praise for Gasperini's tactical substitutions, saying Balerdi in particular "changed the inertia of the match" and allowed Roma to escape the difficulties created by Krstović and return to dominating play. Nando Orsi noted Roma have scored 10 goals so far and represent "a complete team where everyone can score," calling them underperformers on 9 points in the league table. Lorenzo Pes said Gasperini's next step is convincing Dybala he can score again, noting the striker will want to feature in Thursday's Champions League debut.

Roma have scored ten goals across their opening three matches of the 2026-27 season, a dramatic turnaround from the previous year when the club struggled in front of goal. Last season it took until matchday nine on 29 October to reach the same tally. Five different players have found the net: Donyell Malen, Matías Soulé, Niccolò Pisilli, Mario Hermoso and Rodrigo Mora. The breakthrough is historic. Roma last scored ten goals in their opening 270 minutes in the 1960-61 season — 66 years ago — when they actually netted twelve: three against Bari, six against Udinese and three more against Torino. That squad, managed by Alfredo Foni, finished fifth but won the Coppa delle Fiere. The hope now is to capture a trophy missing since 2022, when Mourinho was in charge.

Gian Piero Gasperini has established his grip on Roma through a commanding victory over Atalanta that showcased his tactical approach. The side launched 39 shots on Carnesecchi's goal, demonstrating the intense, aggressive and dominant football that has energised both players and supporters. The success reflects Gasperini's method of adjusting his system at the right moment against the right opponent—a philosophy forged during last season's bedding-in and now delivering results in this campaign's opening weeks. The manager's use of five substitutions proved decisive in regaining control of the match when it threatened to slip away, confirming that the recruitment strategy of the club's directorship has added technical quality and experience to the squad, even if it remains numerically smaller than last season's group. This enhanced competitive level will be tested from Thursday when Roma travel to Istanbul for their Champions League return. The bench performed with such effect that Niccolò Pisilli was deliberately left unused against Atalanta—a calculated omission reflecting the urgency to bolster other areas. The article notes that by January, Roma require an attacking winger of genuine pace, left or right foot, to complete the squad; had Gasperini possessed such a player for the Atalanta match, he would have fielded him instead of Wesley, who cramped badly before the final whistle.

Roma return to the Stadio Olimpico this evening to face Atalanta, managed by Maurizio Sarri, as the Giallorossi look to extend their unbeaten start after two opening-day wins. Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has selected his strongest available squad for the fixture. Gasperini deploys a three-at-the-back formation with Svilar in goal and a back line of Mancini, N'Dicka and Hermoso. Wesley and Lulli operate on the flanks, with Lulli making his third consecutive start, while Cristante and Koné form the midfield pairing. Rodrigo Mora takes the number 10 role behind the front pair of Malen and Paulo Dybala. Roma's substitutes bench includes De Marzi, Gollini, Rensch, Ghilardi, Koulierakis, Castro, De Roon, Molina, Balerdi, Soulé, Arena and Pisilli. Atalanta line up in a 4-3-3 formation: Carnesecchi; Bellanova, Koussonou, Scalvini, Kolasinac; Samardzic, Gaetano, Éderson; De Ketelaere, Scamacca, Elmas.

Roma face Atalanta in the third round of Serie A on 5 September 2026. Gian Piero Gasperini names Paulo Dybala in the starting eleven, with the formation set as a 3-4-1-2: Svilar in goal; Mancini, N'Dicka and Hermoso in defence; Lulli, Cristante, Koné and Wesley across midfield; Rodrigo Mora in the attacking midfield role; and Dybala alongside Donyell Malen in attack. Among the substitutes are Santiago Castro, Matías Soulé, Niccolò Pisilli and Marten de Roon. Atalanta line up in a 4-3-3 formation under Maurizio Sarri: Carnesecchi; Bellanova, Koussonou, Scalvini, Kolasinac; Samardzic, Gaetano, Éderson; De Ketelaere, Scamacca, Elmas. The match is refereed by Colombo, with assistants Bahri and Palermo. Collu is fourth official, Camplone operates as VAR and Santoro as additional VAR.

Roma came from behind to beat Atalanta 2–1 on 5 September, with goals from Mario Hermoso in the 90th minute and Matías Soulé in the 93rd turning the match after Éderson had put the visitors ahead in the 47th. Gasperini's Roma dominated the opening two Serie A fixtures against Fiorentina and Lecce without conceding, and the manager named a side with Evan N'Dicka returning from a muscular problem to anchor the defence alongside Gianluca Mancini and Mario Hermoso. Bryan Cristante and Manu Koné were paired in midfield, with Emanuele Lulli and Wesley holding the flanks. Rodrigo Mora operated behind the front two: Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen started in attack. The victory keeps Roma's unbeaten start intact ahead of their Champions League debut on Thursday against Fenerbahce. Gasperini had Daniele Ghilardi, Leonardo Balerdi, Nahuel Molina, Soulé, Santiago Castro, Marten de Roon, Niccolò Pisilli, Pierluigi Gollini, Giorgio De Marzi and Jan Ziółkowski among his substitutes. Atalanta, managed by Maurizio Sarri, fielded Matteo Carnesecchi in goal and included substitutions involving Gianluca Scamacza (replaced in the 46th minute), Kolasinac, Éderson, Alexei Kolasinac and Jérémie Zappacosta. The match was refereed by Colombo, with assistants Bahri and Palermo; the fourth official was Collu, VAR Camplone and assistant VAR Santoro. Bellanova received a yellow card in the 83rd minute for Atalanta.