Roma’s meeting with Como is set to give Marten de Roon his first start for the Giallorossi, with Bryan Cristante’s injury creating an opening in the centre of the side. For Gian Piero Gasperini, it is a familiar player being asked to take on a decisive role at a point in the season when every league match carries weight.
De Roon arrived as a player Gasperini knows well and specifically wanted alongside him in Rome. Now the Dutchman is expected to provide experience, balance and quality in a midfield reshaped by Cristante’s absence.
Quick facts
- Marten de Roon is expected to make his first Roma start against Como.
- He is due to replace the injured Bryan Cristante in midfield.
- De Roon remained at Trigoria during the international break and worked on his fitness.
- Roma are expected to use Mancini, N’Dicka and Hermoso in defence.
- Wesley and Molina are projected to play on the flanks, with Dybala and Malen in attack.
- The remaining selection question is between Mora and captain Lorenzo Pellegrini behind the forwards.
The international break offered De Roon a valuable period without national-team commitments. He trained continuously at the Fulvio Bernardini centre, using the pause to recover sharpness and build the physical condition required for a first-minute role.
Roma’s staff used the same window to work closely with all players who remained in the capital. Athletic coaches Borelli and Boccolini, long-standing members of Gasperini’s preparation team, focused on muscular details and individual programmes split between pitch and gym work.
Gasperini, assistant coach Gritti and Fumagalli then worked on technical and tactical situations, both with and without the ball. The intention was not simply to add training minutes, but to send the available group into the next league chapter with renewed intensity.
The projected defensive line has Gianluca Mancini, Evan N’Dicka and Mario Hermoso together, while Wesley and Molina are expected to operate out wide. Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen are in line to form the attacking partnership.
The final call concerns the player behind them. Mora and Pellegrini remain in contention, with Roma’s captain also using the break to improve his condition and press his claim for a starting place.
But the central decision appears clearer. De Roon has spent the past three weeks preparing for this opportunity, and Cristante’s absence has handed him a responsibility that goes beyond a simple squad rotation. Against Como, Roma will look to see whether Gasperini’s trusted midfielder can turn that preparation into the control and composure required in the league run-in.
