Gian Piero Gasperini says Roma will prepare for Manchester United as though they were facing the Premier League side at their strongest, despite the pressure on Michael Carrick before Tuesday’s Champions League meeting at Old Trafford.
Roma arrive in Manchester in confident mood after beating Udinese 5-2 on Saturday, a result which moved them up to third in the table, one point behind the leaders. United, by contrast, were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea on the same day.
“They’re going through a difficult period in terms of results in the league, but we must not be distracted by that,” Gasperini said at his pre-match news conference, in quotes carried by Corriere dello Sport.
“Manchester United remain a strong team with players of absolute quality, and Old Trafford is a difficult, intense environment. We are preparing as if we were playing the best Manchester United.”
Asked about Old Trafford’s reputation as the “Theatre of Dreams”, Gasperini said: “Everyone has the right to dream. I try to have dreams that can come true soon, starting tomorrow, in a fantastic stadium known throughout the world. I hope it can happen.”
Roma will be without Lorenzo Pellegrini, Paulo Dybala and Manu Kone, with Primavera players brought into the squad at the weekend to provide additional numbers.
“We are missing Pellegrini, Dybala and Kone in the same areas, so at certain moments we have to adapt,” Gasperini said. “We have Castro as an alternative alongside Malen, but we are short in midfield. I hope this is only a temporary situation.”
Roma have played seven matches “on a knife-edge”, according to their manager, although he believes his players have been physically prepared and able to recover quickly.
“Mora is fine, and all 17 players available are ready,” he added. “After the international break, we hope to have everyone back. This week is difficult.”
Gasperini also highlighted the demands placed on Roma’s wing-backs, praising Wesley, Molina and Rensch.
“Lulli? Wesley is also doing very well in that role. Molina needed to play, while Rensch has performed very well too,” he said. “It is tiring for them because they cover a lot of ground with acceleration and speed.”
The Roma manager rejected the idea that his side could produce a perfect performance, saying their focus was on continued improvement.
“Perfection does not exist, either for the big teams or for us,” he said. “Our quality is that we always try to improve. We know our characteristics, but we also know there are situations in which we can do better.”
Asked whether Carrick’s difficult spell at United resembled Gasperini’s brief time in charge of Inter in 2011, he said the circumstances were not comparable.
“Every situation is different. I do not know United’s situation exactly, but I know they have strong players,” Gasperini said. “You can suffer for a period, then find a way to start again. Hopefully that will happen from the day after tomorrow.”
On his time at Inter, he added: “I really was not there for long three games so I would not make that comparison.”
