Gian Piero Gasperini says Paulo Dybala has rediscovered his best form at Roma after a series of injury problems, while admitting Donyell Malen’s move from Aston Villa has exceeded his expectations.
Gasperini left Atalanta after nine years, having guided the club to several Champions League qualifications and their Europa League triumph, to take on what he described as a major gamble at Stadio Olimpico.
His first season in charge involved reshaping the team, but Roma still finished third in Serie A and returned to the Champions League for the first time in seven years.
Roma have begun the current campaign strongly and are joint top of Serie A alongside Inter and Lazio. They also drew 1-1 away to Fenerbahce in Europe.
“The first training session was anxiously awaited, because after many years, I was facing a new environment,” Gasperini said at the Festival dello Sport event in Trento.
“The players were eager too, although perhaps they had heard my training sessions were very tough and wanted to be prepared. My only objective in that first season was to create some new and different foundations, based on clear ideas, ones that many of the players weren’t used to.
“The first concept I focus on is that we have to go and get the ball off our opponents, not wait for them to give it away.”
Gasperini said walking away from Atalanta, where he had felt at home, was like “crossing the Rubicon” in his career.
He praised Roma’s defensive players as “gladiators” and said he had challenged Gianluca Mancini to alter his approach.
“I told him he had to change his attitude, because every opponent found him annoying and it held him back from the Italy squad too,” he said.
Dybala has become a key part of Roma’s attacking play and is now finding greater consistency after years disrupted by injuries. Gasperini said he had initially been warned that the Argentina forward would need careful management.
“When I arrived, I thought this would be an issue of training. They told me he needed to rest regularly and be preserved, but he kept getting injured,” he said.
“In certain situations, he was truly unlucky, but this season he has been extraordinary and ends with fresher legs than many others.
“This confirms that training is an important component of football and not just a chore. He’s getting better and better, can now kick the ball the way he did before.”
Gasperini ranks Dybala among the most gifted players he has coached.
“I’ve coached many poets of football in my career, but Dybala is among the top. I worked with the likes of Jeda, Ilicic, Milito, all players I call poets because they have gestures and touches that nobody else does.”
Malen joined Roma from Aston Villa in January after tactical concerns prompted the Premier League club to sell him.
“Sometimes an unexpected opportunity on the market can transform your plans,” Gasperini said. “He wanted to be a centre-forward, and I always thought that’s where he was stronger too, as he’s deadly near the penalty area.”
He added: “I didn’t expect his numbers to be so astonishing. I told him Gonzalo Higuain scored 36 Serie A goals in a season, but I’d be happy if he got to 30.”
