Roma's pre season preparations took a predictably positive turn this afternoon as they put Serie D minnows Trastevere to the sword with a resounding 6...
Roma's pre season preparations took a predictably positive turn this afternoon as they put Serie D minnows Trastevere to the sword with a resounding 6. 0 victory at their Trigoria training base. The scoreline itself tells a pleasant lie about the contest being competitive, but for Claudio Ranieri's side, these friendly fixtures are rarely about the opposition. They are about rhythm, sharpness, and getting the chemistry right before the real business begins.The standout narrative from this run out will naturally centre on Donyell Malen, the Dutch forward who opened his account for the Giallorossi. Watching him glide across the pitch, you get the sense that Ranieri is trying to unlock that explosive transitional play we all saw at Dortmund. Today, it clicked. His movement off the ball caused chaos in a Trastevere backline that simply had no answer to his pace and willingness to run the channels. It was a goal that screamed confidence, the kind of clinical finishing that could make him a fan favourite if he can replicate it against sterner defences.Then, of course, there is Paulo Dybala. La Joya did what La Joya does. He floats, he drifts, he finds pockets of space that defenders do not even realise exist until the ball is nestling in the back of the net. His contribution was a reminder that class is permanent, even in a friendly against part time opponents. He is the conductor of this orchestra, and when he is in the mood, Roma's attacking football has a technical veneer that few teams in Serie A can match. To see him linking up with Malen was genuinely encouraging. There was a telepathy there, a shared understanding of angles and timing that bodes well for the season ahead.Make no mistake, a 6. 0 win against a Serie D side is nothing more than a training exercise with a crowd. It tells you very little about Ranieri's tactical flexibility when the pressure is on. But it does tell you something about attitude. Nobody coasted. There was no sense of going through the motions. The intensity was there, the pressing was sharp, and the finishing was ruthless. For a squad still gelling, that kind of professionalism in a dead rubber is worth noting. You cannot coach hunger, but you can certainly see it in a performance like this.Of course, the real tests will come when the bus is parked by a determined mid table side or when Roma are forced to defend a lead against a more technical outfit. But for now, the signs are encouraging. Ranieri has options. He has a goalscorer in Malen looking reborn, and a magician in Dybala still turning defenders inside out. If they can stay fit and keep this understanding growing, the rest of Serie A might just have a problem on their hands.
