Champions League

Roma remain the league's form team with two 4-0 wins and a treatment room that is emptying rather than filling. Evan Ndicka's tests ruled out any muscle tear, finding only inflammation of the hamstring, while Devyne Rensch and Lorenzo Pellegrini have partially rejoined the group at Trigoria. Gasperini therefore has more or less all his options before hosting Atalanta, his former club, at an Olimpico set to be full. The only reservation is that sporting director Tony D'Amico himself acknowledged the squad is “a player short” at the end of the window.

New sporting director Tony D'Amico went public on 2 September at Trigoria to close the transfer window chapter, denying any concrete offer for Manu Koné — only enquiries — and accepting that the squad remains one short. That intervention extends Gasperini's line, having already voiced his irritation at overly long transfer windows and at the rumours surrounding his midfielder. On the ownership side, the Friedkins remain committed to the Roma project while seeking, according to the Financial Times, investors for a significant stake in Everton. No tension between head coach and board is reported.

Enthusiasm is at its peak after two 4-0 wins: demand for tickets for the visit of Atalanta is such that the club has opened the Distinti Nord-Ovest section, normally reserved for away fans, to giallorossi supporters at 30 euros, offering the Distinti Nord-Est at 55 euros as an alternative. The Bergamo press describes a “boiling” Olimpico and a “giallorossa tide” for this Saturday-night fixture. The mood has also calmed around Marten de Roon, given a warm welcome on his arrival despite his Bergamo past. Gasperini's return against his former club promises an emotionally charged evening.

No pressure on Gian Piero Gasperini, whose start to the season is the best in the league and who has not conceded a single goal in two matchdays. He is now managing an abundance of options, notably in a back three where Ghilardi delivered at Lecce in Ndicka's absence. The one point of attention concerns squad depth going into a schedule on two rhythms, league and Champions League, a subject his sporting director himself put on the table. The clash with Atalanta, his former club, adds a personal dimension to a fixture already billed as the first real test.

The club is competing on two demanding fronts and has submitted a list of twenty-four players for the Champions League league phase, leaving room for young players such as Arena, De Marzi and Lulli. That opening to the academy reflects Gasperini's intention to widen his rotation gradually rather than sign more players. In the league, the stated ambition is to bank as many points as possible while the momentum is there. The board, through Tony D'Amico, nonetheless acknowledges a squad still one player short to go the distance.

The friction points remain peripheral. The Koné situation occupied the end of the window before the sporting director closed it by referring to mere enquiries with no offer. On the disciplinary front, UEFA has opened proceedings against Mattéo Guendouzi and Mason Greenwood, Fenerbahçe players, following the Champions League play-off second leg against Roma, with the Turkish club announcing it would defend its players before the relevant bodies. Finally, the search for investors in Everton, another Friedkin asset, is fuelling questions about how the ownership allocates its resources.