Roma travel to the Maradona for Saturday’s 18:00 meeting with Napoli on 24 October carrying a squad shaped as much by absences as by selection. Gian Piero Gasperini has named 22 players for a demanding Serie A afternoon, but will again be without Mile Svilar, Manu Koné and Paulo Dybala.
The most pressing new concern is Lorenzo Pellegrini. The Roma captain was injured during the Champions League match against Slovan and faces a potentially lengthy lay-off, with the expected recovery period reaching two months. Tests identified a serious injury at the lower muscle-tendon junction of the semitendinosus in his right thigh, removing another experienced option from Gasperini’s plans.
It leaves Roma heading into Naples with reduced depth in several areas, while the coach turns to a group containing established figures such as Gianluca Mancini, Evan Ndicka, Bryan Cristante and Matias Soulé, alongside younger members of the squad. The Maradona fixture will ask the visitors to find a response without several players who would ordinarily shape the side’s balance and personality.
Roma squad for Napoli
Goalkeepers: Vasquez, De Marzi, Gollini.
Defenders: Rensch, Koulierakis, Ndicka, Molina, Hermoso, Mancini, Balerdi, Wesley, Lulli, Ghilardi.
Midfielders: Cristante, De Roon, Pisilli, Di Nunzio, Mora.
Forwards: Castro, Malen, Soulé, Camara.
