After a few early stumbles in his managerial career, Gian Piero Gasperini found success in Atalanta thanks to his ability to turn overlooked assets into superstars. From Luis Muriel to Robin Gosens to Josip Illicic to Ademola Lookman, Gasperini has created more than his fair share of cinderellas. Granted, they don't always replicate that success once they part ways with Gasperini, but that's precisely the point and why Roma pursued him so intently last spring: He's an attacking mastermind.
Now, imagine
what Gasperini could do with an already finished product like Feyenoord forward Igor Paixao. I'll give you a moment to wipe the drool off your chin. After scoring 36 goals and providing 23 assists in parts of three seasons with the club (all comps), Paixao has emerged as one of the more intriguing attacking prospects on the transfer market.
But last season was the Brazilian's true coming-out party:
A look at Igor Paixao's incredible stats with Feyenoord last season.
— James Marshment (@marshyleeds) July 28, 2025
Easy to see why Leeds United are now making a big push for his signing. A quality operator and a Brazil international in the making... #LUFC @TEAMtalk pic.twitter.com/VPZREUDNKE
As one of the more dynamic talents in the Eredivisie, Paixao seems tailor-made for a coach like Gasperini, who depends heavily on aggressive, multi-hyphenate talents like the 25-year-old Brazilian. Thanks to his mix of scoring, aggression, and creativity, Paixao's fit with Roma's forwards is almost perfect; it wouldn't be hard to see him achieving double digits in goals and assists when playing alongside talents like Artem Dovbyk, Evan Ferguson, and Paulo Dybala, among others.
Certainly, Roma isn't the only club that values Paixao. Multiple European sources indicate that the Giallorossi are in a three-way competition for the €30 million-rated forward, alongside Marseille and Leeds. Among these, the English team is currently the frontrunner, having made the only official bid exceeding thirty million, so they must be considered the prohibitive favorites.
And any time English money gets involved, Roma's chances of success dwindle. Still, given how ideally suited he is for Gasperini's football, Roma should pull out all the stops and blow Leeds and Marseille out of the water. Paixao could be the final piece of the puzzle, the one that pulls everything together, setting the stage for a successful partnership between Gasperini and the Giallorossi.
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