Roma To The Champions League: What Do They Need To Do This Summer?
Article excerpt
Roma secured Champions League football with a third-place finish in Serie A, but the club faces a critical offseason. To compete seriously in Europe's elite competition rather than merely participate, Roma must address significant squad gaps, particularly in defense and midfield depth. The article examines what additions and departures the Roman club needs to transform from a qualified team into genuine continental contenders, as the mood around the training ground at Trigoria has shifted with European qualification.
Roma To The Champions League: What Do They Need To Do This Summer?
Roma are back in the Champions League, but being there and being serious contenders are two very different things.
Roma’s third-place finish changes the mood around Trigoria. The club ended Serie A with 73 points, 59 goals scored and only 31 conceded, winning its final five league games to edge into Europe’s top competition ahead of Milan and Juventus. The 2-0 win at Verona returned Roma to the Champions League for the first time since 2018-19, the realities of modern football meaning it was worth heralding a financial as well as a sporting return to the Champions League.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s side has a clear base, though the summer has to add goals and pace, while protecting the defensive structure that carried them there.
Keep The Defensive Base Intact
Roma’s clearest strength is defensive reliability. Only Como conceded fewer in Serie A than Roma’s total of 31, while Inter conceded four more and Napoli five more. That gives Roma a foothold in the Champions League because Gasperini’s man-oriented system can survive tricky nights if the back line and goalkeeper stay sharp.
So the first summer rule is simple: don’t weaken the spine. Mile Svilar, Gianluca Mancini, Evan Ndicka and Manu Koné should be treated as platform players unless a sale becomes absolutely unavoidable.
Champions League football will add midweek stress and rotation pressure, so it looks like Roma need defensive cover and one wing-back with real carry-and-cross output.
The Weakness Is In The Final Third
Roma’s attack cleared the Serie A bar for ‘Champions League standard’, yet the Champions League itself demands a higher ceiling. Inter scored 89 league goals and Como scored 65, giving both a wider attacking margin. Roma’s 59 goals point to the obvious gap: they need more repeatable chance-creation and a second reliable route to goal when Dybala is managed carefully.
Donyell Malen’s impact was decisive, but one hot attacking spell cannot be the whole plan. Artem Dovbyk has his qualities as a target man, yet Gasperini’s football needs forwards who press and attack space from different angles. That explains the links to Joshua Zirkzee and Gianluca Scamacca, two forwards who offer different versions of hold-up play and box presence. Football Italia reported that Roma remain interested in Zirkzee and could also rival Milan for Scamacca.
The Betting Market Sees Roma As A Long Shot
Early Champions League outright markets place Roma among the outsiders rather than the favorites. Available futures prices have generally sat around 40/1 to 50/1, or roughly +4000 to +5000 in American odds, which is likely the sort of range Canadian sportsbooks may display where available.
Roma are dangerous, but the titans of PSG, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Manchester City, Barcelona and Real Madrid start from a higher squad-value and European-experience base. For Canadian users betting on AS Roma’s fortunes for next season, the sensible first step is using a high-quality review site like SportsbookReview.com to compare the best bonus offers and best sportsbooks overall. Its Canadian bonuses page rates operators, promo values, codes, market coverage, app notes and terms guidance. This helps you find a sports betting sign up bonus available in Canada that can lower your risk in multiple respects, before placing any long-range futures bet.
Reported Targets Need A Clear Filter
The names should be judged by role fit. Zirkzee would make sense if Roma want a mobile striker who can knit attacks together. Scamacca would bring a more Italian, penalty-box reference point. Meanwhile, two of Gasperini’s reported targets, Antonio Nusa and Crysencio Summerville fit the need for direct wide speed.
Mason Greenwood has also been reported as a major attacking target. The football case is clear enough: left-footed, productive and comfortable from the right. The wider calculation is more complicated given his controversial history, so Roma would need to weigh cost, wages, fan reception and dressing-room impact before treating him as the headline move.
Benfica’s Richard Rios is another logical reported profile. A midfield runner with Champions League minutes would help Roma sustain Gasperini’s intensity. At fullback, options like reported transfer targets Mario Mitaj from Al Ittihad, or Jayden Oosterwolde from Fenerbahce, would address the same issue from a different angle: Roma need more athletic width.
Where Roma Should Be Creative
Hypothetically, Roma should have fallback lists ready. If Zirkzee or Scamacca becomes too expensive, they need a younger pressing forward in the Brian Brobbey mold: strong and mobile. If the wing market overheats, they should look for a wide forward with Johan Bakayoko-style traits: one-on-one threat, pressing appetite, left-footed delivery and resale value.
The mistake would be signing famous names who do not increase the team’s tempo. Roma need pace, repeat sprints, press-resistance and clean final-third decisions. In Champions League terms, one more ball-carrier could be as valuable as one more finisher.
A Summer Built Around Clarity
Roma need to be very clear on where their weaknesses lie. Ideally, two starting-level attackers, one athletic fullback, defensive cover and a midfield rotation option would all be needed to galvanise the side, if the budget allows.
That is a big summer, but it is not an impossible one. Gasperini has already given Roma identity. The market now has to give that identity enough speed and scoring power to survive Wednesday nights as well as weekends.