Why Gian Piero Gasperini and AS Roma are a Match Made in Heaven
We are only two matchdays into the Serie A season, and AS Roma under new coach Gian Piero Gasperini are one of four clubs with two wins from the opening two games of the 2024/25 season. Juventus, Napoli, AS Roma and Cremonese are the four sides. It has raised expectations with Roma fans on social media and its an early sample size, but it seems to be a perfect fit for both club and individual.
The football club, which has been a bit of basket case in recent years, now finds itself with a bubbling atmosphere after a turmoil-laden few years. Since the beginning of 2024, the club is now on its fifth coach. Jose Mourinho was sacked in January 2024. Daniele De Rossi, his predecessor, only lasted nine months and was sacked just four games into last season. Roma only picked up two points from the opening four games.
Ivan Juric proved to be a stopgap and lasted just two months and sacked minutes after the final whistle in November after a 3-2 home defeat to Bologna. Claudio Ranieri for a third and hopefully final time, took charge and completed the firefighting job. Roma finished fifth and went on a wonderful run of nineteen games unbeaten from December 15th to May 12th.
It was Gasperini’s then-Atalanta side who broke Roma hearts in the race for top four and Champions League football with a 2-1 home win in Bergamo. Roma would win the final two games of the season at home to AC Milan and away in Turin against Torino, to give themselves a chance of dining at the top table of European football. it would not to be as Juventus won away at Venezia after a loan Juventus player gave away a penalty late in the second half.
In May at the end of the season, Gian Piero Gasperini left Atalanta after nine fruitful years in Bergamo. He took the club to two Coppa Italia finals but sadly lost both., guided Atalanta to Europe in the Europa League and Champions League, and year by year, challenged the top three. In 2024, he won the Europa League after beating Bayer Leverkusen in the final thanks to a hat-trick from Ademola Lookman.
On June 6th, 2025, it was announced that Gasperini had moved to the capital to be the head coach of AS Roma. Gasperini joins on a three-year deal to the end of the 2027/28 season. Claudio Ranieri did jokingly said in a press conference at the end of last season that the next coach of Roma will be younger than me. There is a six-year difference with Ranieri, now seventy-three years old and Gasperini at sixty-seven years old.
Claudio Ranieri has moved upstairs and has been joined by Frederic Massara as the new sporting director of AS Roma, almost six years to the day return back to Roma after leaving by mutual consent in 2019. Both have tried and build a squad for Gian Piero Gasperini on all three fronts.
The summer transfer mercato for Roma was a bit indifferent; they managed to bring in nine players. With Wesley Franca, Neil El Aynaoui from Flamengo and Lens. Evan Ferguson, Leon Bailey and Kostas Tsmikas on loan from Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Brighton. Polish defender Jan Ziolkowski was signed from Legia Warsaw. Daniele Ghilardi was signed from Hellas Verona.
Two more goalkeepers were brought in with Devis Vasquez and Radoslaw Zelezny from AC Milan and Juventus Primavera side. I leave the best to last with Mile Svilar’s contract renewal, which was crucial. Roma also managed to keep Evan Ndicka and Manu Kone, two of the three pillars to the defence and midfield with Svilar.
Roma managed to recoup close to €43m with the departures of Enzo Le Fee to Sunderland, Samuel Dahl to Benfica, Nicola Zalewski to Inter Milan then was sold by Inter to Atalanta. Leandro Paredes to Boca Juniors. Tammy Abraham and Eldo Shomurodov left for Türkiye to Besiktas and Istanbul Basaksehir.
Ola Solbakken left for Denmark to Nordsjaelland. Saul Abdulhamid, Mario Kumbulla both left on loan to Lens and Mallorca, respectively. Anass Salah-Eddine, who was brought in from FC Twente in January, left to go back to Holland to go on loan to PSV.
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Roma under Massara and Ranieri’s guidance failed to deliver Gian Piero Gasperini a left-sided attacker. Roma fluttered their eyes was trying to convince Jadon Sancho to join from Manchester United for an entire month, only for Sancho to go to the Midlands and join Aston Villa. There was a late bid rejected from Bologna for Benjamin Dominguez. Finally, there was late interest in Chelsea’s Tyrique George.
Who then nearly went to Fulham on deadline day, but it collapsed last minute. The failed bid for a winger left bitterness in the mouths of Roma fans on social media. They spent the majority of August trying to convince Jadon Sancho to leave Manchester to go to Rome but was left with egg on their faces.
On the pitch, Roma is certainly passing the eye test. After beating Bologna and Pisa 1-0 via goals from Wesley Franca and Matias Soule, they fell to a 1-0 defeat to Torino before bouncing back with a 1-0 win against Lazio, with Lorenzo Pellegrini’s first-half goal sealing a victory in the Derby della Capitale. They then edged Nice 2-1 in the UEFA Europa League before prevailing 2-0 at home against Hellas Verona, moving to third in the Serie A table.
In the early rounds of Serie A, you can see the implementation of Gian Piero Gasperini’s 3-4-2-1, which worked so well at Atalanta. High press, man-to-man marking, playing out from the back, interchangeable positions, vertical attacking football. It will take time, Gasperini and his Atalanta side used to start slowly and really hit their form in November and December onwards. It is nice to see Gasperini’s style of football reaping the rewards early at Roma.
Gasperini has brought players who were left out in the cold last season in Mario Hermoso, back into the fold, and he has slotted in and played the opening round of games as the RCB. A left-footed CB playing on the right, opening the game up from defence.
Stephan El Shaarawy has deputised on the left of the two behind the striker as Paulo Dybala is coming back to full fitness. Matias Soule has excelled on the right side of attack. Even without scoring Evan Ferguson has been a massive hit in the opening games of the season.
A striker who has held the ball up and given opposition defenders problems with his physicality, this has brought Roma attacking players more into the game. Gian Piero Gasperini loves a physical striker in his repertoire. Look what he has done with Gianluca Scamacca before his horrible knee injury and Mateo Retegui last season. Roma fans are hoping Gasperini can work his magic on Evan Ferguson and on Artem Dovbyk in reserve.
I am hoping Roma can continue with the work that has been done on the pitch, but with the failed transfer dealings in the latter stages of the summer transfer mercato I am left with a bit of a bitter taste. As a Roma fan, I am hoping that the club is not left wanting with the lack of depth attacking wide areas going into January and cut adrift from the top.
By: Scot Munroe / @scot_munroe
Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Getty Images