In the wake of yesterday’s draw with second-place AC Milan—one in which Roma dominated the first half, generating chances on a whim—Gian Piero Gasperini acknowledged that it was a complicated fixture but
was adamant that Roma would have won had they not fallen behind early in the second half. While that may sound like a classic “yeah, but” line of thinking, given how poorly Roma has played against Italy’s biggest clubs, I prefer to think of yesterday’s draw at the Olimpico as a “Hey, it’s better than nothing” result.
After all, despite dropping two points in a match the club could have won (based purely on their first-half onslaught), Roma finished Round 22 in third place, tied on points with fourth-place Napoli. In that light, the only real tragedy from yesterday’s result was the opportunity cost of not padding their lead over the Partenopei.
Still, the sight of Donyell Malen, Paulo Dybala, and Matías Soulé running wild in the final third, trouncing all over the Milan defense, provides plenty of optimism for an exciting spring.
But, I’m afraid we have to begin today’s Sinners & Saints on a dour note.
The Sinners
Donyell Malen
A week after electrifying the capital with a stunning debut against Torino, the club (and the fans) were riding high on the belief that they had finally found their striker. Sure, Malen may not cut an impressive figure alongside opposing center-backs, but the speed and precision of his runs, his reaction time, and his shot power make him an ideal Gasperini striker, our very own Luis Muriel.
So, when Malen came out guns blazing against the Rossoneri, firing six shots on goal in the first 33 minutes, he seemed poised to top his impressive debut. There was just one small problem. Of those six attempts, three were saved, one was blocked, and two more missed outright. Looking at the xG vs. xGOT discrepancy, it seems Malen may have suffered a bit of bad luck, as he improved the outcome of those initial chances, so we won’t harangue him any further.
But, man, wasting three chances in or near the six-yard box is hard to ignore—in fact, SofaScore counted two of those as big chances missed. Then again, if Mike Maignan had reacted a split second later or been slightly out of position, we’d be hailing Malen as a hero.
Evan Ndicka
Roma’s defensive stalwart had an otherwise solid evening, contributing two key passes, including a great chip in the box to Malen, but his marking on Kone De Winter’s goal was suspect. He initially seemed fixated on Matteo Gabbia, who started the sequence in the box before rushing out of the area once the short corner was played to Modric, but in doing so, he lost sight of De Winter, who slipped past him for a clean header.
Given everything that occurred before this goal, Roma’s flurry of wasted chances and their let-up to begin the second half, the laws of Roma Happened made this goal inevitable, but Ndicka did himself few favors here.
The Saints
Paulo Dybala
La Joya continued his scintillating start to 2026 with an impressive 68-minute run against Milan. Starting his seventh consecutive league match, Dybala was instrumental in Roma’s first-half surge, providing four key passes, completing two of two long balls and playing 21 passes into the final third. He’s either ending his Roma career on a high note or auditioning for a new contract.
Let’s hope it’s the latter—Roma is never worse off for having Paulo Dybala.
Bryan Cristante
With Neil El Aynaoui recovering from a rather intense two weeks at the Africa Cup of Nations, Bryan Cristante once again started in the heart of Gasperini’s midfield. And, as is typically the case when we anoint him with post-match sainthood, Cristante put on a passing masterclass: 94% passing, including 7-9 on long passes, 18 balls into the final third, and two key passes. Defensively, Cristante won 67% of his duels while clearing two balls and recovering three more.
At this point, we know that Cristante’s will to live is surpassed only by cockroaches and Twinkies, so we can’t simply assume that El Aynaoui will replace him in the starting lineup.
Daniele Ghilardi
Relegated to the bench for the first half of the season, the 23-year-old defender is coming to life in the New Year. Looking like a modern-day Philippe Mexès, Ghilardi was clinical at the back, leading all Roma players with nine defensive actions and eight recoveries, but he showed little hesitation moving up the pitch and getting involved in the attack, completing three of six long passes and contributing one key pass.
Between Ghilardi, Jan Ziolkowski, Gianluca Mancini, Mario Hermoso, and Evan Ndicka, Gasperini has a bevy of options at the back.
We’ll forego the Stuck In Betweens this time, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention Lorenzo Pellegrini, whose brilliantly struck penalty saved a point for the Giallorossi.
