Three days after drawing 1-1 at Fenerbahçe in their Champions League opener, AS Roma head to Turin carrying the kind of mixed feelings that road trips to Turkey tend to produce. Gian Piero Gasperini’s side remain second in Serie A with a perfect three wins from three domestic games, but the flat finish in Istanbul gives Torino something to target on Sunday afternoon. The Granata sit 14th after a shaky start, and Ignazio Abate’s squad needs a home performance to stop a slide before it deepens.
What’s at stake
Roma arrive at the Stadio Olimpico di Torino with 9 points from three Serie A games, level with Inter at third but a point behind leaders Lazio, who have played a game more and sit on 10. With Cagliari also on 9 points, the gap between Roma and fifth place is already tighter than their clean domestic record suggests, and Gasperini will not want to drop points against a side in the bottom half. The top four spots carry Champions League places and Roma’s description in the standings reads ‘Champions League league stage’ – but the season is early enough that nothing is settled.
For Torino, the picture is different. Three points from three matches, two losses including a 1-2 reverse at Sassuolo and a home defeat to AC Milan, leave them only clear of a congested lower-table group by a small margin. A win here would move them into genuine mid-table company and validate last matchday’s 2-1 win at Fiorentina as a turning point rather than an outlier. A third league defeat, against a Roma side that has scored 10 league goals in three games, would renew pressure on Abate’s system.
How they got here
Roma’s last five competitive outings read W-W-W-D in meaningful matches, with a pre-season draw against Borussia Dortmund preceding three Serie A victories over Fiorentina (4-0), Lecce (4-0) and Atalanta (2-1), then Tuesday’s 1-1 in Istanbul. That is 10 goals scored and just one conceded in the league alone. Donyell Malen leads the Serie A scoring charts with five goals from those three fixtures. Torino’s last five span two competitions: a Coppa Italia win over Carrarese, then three league losses against Milan, Sassuolo and a narrow 0-1 Coppa exit to Monza, before the 2-1 away win at Fiorentina nine days ago that gave them their only league three points.
Torino sit 14th in Serie A on 3 points. Roma are second on 9 points, six clear of Torino and only a point behind league leaders Lazio. The head-to-head over the last 10 meetings heavily favors Roma, who have won six of those contests against two Torino victories and two draws, including a 2-0 league win in Turin earlier this calendar year.
Key battle to watch
Malen’s movement against Torino’s defensive line is the clearest threat Gasperini’s side carries into this game. The Dutch forward has five league goals already and has punished high defensive lines with sharp runs in behind. Torino were beaten by AC Milan and Sassuolo partly through defensive mistakes on the counter, and if they sit too deep they risk giving Malen and the Roma midfield space to combine through Lorenzo Pellegrini and Mats de Roon. Abate will need his back line to hold a narrow, organized shape without being drawn into chasing the ball wide, where Roma’s full-backs have created opportunities consistently in this early run of fixtures.
Key Stats
Match Context
Standings
Head To Head
Our Prediction
Roma’s attacking output this season is a level above what Torino have faced, and the Granata’s defensive record suggests they will be tested early and often. The 1-1 in Istanbul shows Gasperini’s side can be held, but Fenerbahçe are a different proposition than a Torino team still building cohesion. Roma are the stronger side on current form and history in this fixture, and a visiting win looks the most likely outcome, though Abate’s team showed enough spirit at Fiorentina to suggest this will not be entirely straightforward.
AS Roma
Torino
Donyell Malen