With Roma’s epic Champions League collapse against Real Madridnow a good 48 hours behind us, it’s time to stop licking our wounds and focus on the immediate future. While the Genoa Cricket and Football Club can’t hold a candle to the likes of Real Madrid, Saturday’s fixture will still prevent a formidable challenge to Gian Piero Gasperini and the Giallorossi.
Granted, Daniele De Rossi’s crew doesn’t boast names like Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham, and Vini Jr., but our dear old DDR is catching his
former club at an inopportune time. In addition to the insult of coughing up a two-goal lead with seven minutes remaining on Wednesday, Roma suffered a bit of injury, too.
In the 17th minute of Roma’s midweek collapse, star midfielder Manu Koné left the pitch in tears after suffering an apparent injury to his right hamstring. And if that weren’t enough, the straw that stirs the drink, Paulo Dybala, left the match with a minor calf injury.
We’ll take our stab at Roma’s possible lineup solutions shortly, but for now, let’s take a spin through Gasperini’s pre-match presser, where he provided updates on the club’s walking wounded, squad depth concerns and dealing with the fallout from Wednesday’s mess against Madrid.
On Koné and Dybala:
“Koné’s MRI revealed a Grade 1 injury, which isn’t particularly serious. Obviously, these things take time, and we hope to have him back a little before the international break. As for Dybala, there’s nothing unusual to report. He has a strain in his calf muscle, and we hope to have him back next week.”
On Pellegrini potentially playing in midfield and Cristante’s recovery:
“Given the current injury crisis, Pellegrini can certainly fill that role. In the meantime, we’ll try to get Cristante back. We hope he’ll be available for the Napoli game, otherwise for the one after that.”
On Pellegrini’s fitness:
“He underwent surgery and was out for months. He’s working his way back to full fitness and needs to play to regain some strength and physical condition. Being inactive is one thing; being sidelined by an injury is another. But he’s on the right track.”
On the available options against Genoa:
“At the moment, unless we turn to players from the Primavera—and I will do that—we’re without Svilar, while among the outfield players we’re missing Malen through suspension, as well as Koné, Dybala and Cristante.
“We also have a number of other absences. Right now, we have numbers in defense and out wide, but we’re stretched thin in midfield and attack. We do have options, and we have enough players to take the field. There’s no problem in that respect.”
Of course, with so many injuries besetting his squad, it was only natural that Gasperini reflected on the depth and quality of the players on the bench.
“We also need to expand our squad. The players who feature tomorrow—Castro, Mora and others—need to develop the same confidence and belief in their own ability. Competitions are won with a squad, with a team. And a team isn’t made up of eleven players anymore, or even fifteen or sixteen. In our case, we need at least twenty. At a minimum.
“Unfortunately—or fortunately, I’m not sure—which is increasingly the case when you compete in these tournaments and play in the Champions League, you need a bigger group of players. Injuries happen, suspensions happen, and some injuries keep players out for a month while others last a week. Meanwhile, you still have three matches to play.
“Tomorrow will be our third game in seven days, and Tuesday will be our fourth in ten. That’s how football has changed. We either adapt or we suffer the consequences.”
Gasperini then reflected on how this depth, or lack thereof, will impact Saturday’s match against Genoa
“It certainly won’t be an easy game—far from it. Even with a full squad, it would be a difficult match. My main concern is that we have very few options on the bench. In some positions, we may have to get through the full 90 minutes with the help of a Primavera player making their debut.”
“We need to keep developing the young players we have, who may have to help us find a way to beat Genoa tomorrow.”
And finally, at least for our purposes, Gasperini addressed the psychological response to Wednesday’s defeat and how that could impact the team’s mood against Genoa
“This team simply has to express itself on the pitch, full stop. If you concede a goal, even in an unfortunate situation, you can’t let your morale collapse.
“What matters most to me is the performance and how you measure yourself against these teams. We’ve come out on top late against Parma and Atalanta, while against Inter, Juventus and Real Madrid, we’ve probably been on the receiving end.
“Clearly, it isn’t a question of physical exhaustion so much as mental strength. In those moments, we can recover through organization—which broke down on the 3-2 goal—and a strong response. That response was probably lacking a little at a certain point the other night.”
“Our next opponent might not have the star players we faced the other night, but they are certainly better organized and very good at closing down space, covering areas and maintaining their shape. So it will present a different kind of challenge.”
“Tomorrow, whoever takes the field, we’ll need strength, conviction and energy. We’re returning to league action, where we’re one of the teams setting the pace.
“Tomorrow is a game in which we have to give everything, one way or another. I’m sure we’ll have the spirit, mentality, strength and energy to go out and try to win.
“Winning this kind of game builds confidence, gives injured players time to return and brings value to the players we have available. We have the players, but we also need to get the most out of those who, at this moment, we have to call upon. There’s no getting around that.”
Roma and Genoa take the pitch at 20:45 CET/2:45 EDT, so stick with us as we continue to preview De Rossi’s return!
