The Giallorossi coach after elimination from the Coppa Italia by Torino: “Vaz? It’s a team that works hard on perspective and thinks about the future. If the goal is to develop the young players, that’s fine, as long as it’s clear and we also play 16-year-olds and Primavera players like Arena…”

The Baroni curse continues for Gasperini. And the Coppa Italia becomes the first missed target of the season for a Roma side that was too distracted in defense. But the performance still leaves a smile on the Giallorossi coach’s face. “The boys came back twice in the game and I’m satisfied with the performance against a good Torino side,” admitted Gasp. “I’m less happy about the goal we conceded in the 90th minute, but I really liked the spirit and I’m going home grateful to my players. It’s clear that we rotated the squad a lot, but the game was open and we could have won it. Then there was that corner, which left us disappointed because at that point we thought we were going to penalties.”

While waiting for new signings, the Giallorossi coach had to resort to all his resources, including Arena. “He’s a guy with a lot of competitive drive. He’s strong and fearless. We’re talking about a very young guy.” And when it comes to the transfer market, Gasp’s smile fades a little. “I expected more support in the transfer market in July or August, now it’s more difficult,” Gasperini reiterates. “We’re lacking in some areas, that’s obvious. But so far, we’ve had a good season and we want to continue that. Vaz? He’s a signing for a team that works hard on its prospects and thinks about the future. If the goal is to develop young players, that’s fine, as long as it’s clear and we also play 16-year-olds and Primavera players like Arena. We need to understand whether we want to be competitive right away or develop young players.” Finally, some kind words for Bailey: “He played center forward with a spirit I had never seen in him in five months. He seems to have recovered, he showed liveliness, I’m sorry I put him in a difficult position, in a role he had never played before, showing self-sacrifice, even risking some bad moments. Unfortunately, he has always been plagued by injuries.”