Roma Bets on Argentine Muscle to End 23-Year Wait for the Scudetto

Four goals on opening day, a hat trick from Donyell Malen and three assists from Paulo Dybala. That's how Roma kicked off this Serie A season, with a 4-0 thrashing of Fiorentina that served as a statement from a team arriving with more firepower than in recent years. It's no coincidence: behind that result lies a transfer window that reinforced exactly the areas that needed it, with a particular twist. Never before has the Roma roster featured so many Argentines at once.

Serie A is going through an unusual stretch. After Juventus won nine straight titles through 2020, there's no clear frontrunner today. Inter, the reigning champion, sits just slightly ahead of the pack, but plenty of clubs allow themselves to dream. Roma is one of them. The club hasn't won the Scudetto since 2001, the title that had Gabriel Batistuta as top scorer and Walter Samuel as a defensive pillar. Almost a quarter century later, the Lupi are looking upward again with an Argentine accent.

Joining the already established Dybala and Matias Soule this year are three signings brought in to compete for real: Santiago Castro, Nahuel Molina and Leonardo Balerdi. With them, Roma ties Parma, which also has five Argentines on its roster, for the most in all of Serie A.

A Locker Room With Its Own Accent

Castro arrived from Bologna for more than $40 million, one of the five most expensive purchases in club history, and wasted no time showing the competitive edge so prized in Argentine players abroad.

I saw the value of this group and we can compete against anyone. We have strong players in every line and Gasperini is one of the best coaches in Italy. We're at the level to fight for the Scudetto and the Cup, and we also want to do well in the Champions League. If you're at Roma, you have to aim to win everything.Santiago Castro

Molina left Atletico Madrid for around $20 million after an up and down season, both at club level and at the World Cup, despite reaching the final with Argentina. Roma is banking on getting back the incisive fullback who scored a crucial goal against the Netherlands in the Qatar 2022 quarterfinals.

The last to join was Balerdi, who arrived on loan with an option to buy from Olympique de Marseille. The 27 year old defender was coming off the frustration of missing the World Cup through injury, and now looks to add solidity to a back line that needs better balance.

Soule, for his part, begins his third year at the club at age 23, with expectations that he'll finally show the talent that led Juventus to sign him for its youth ranks when he was just 16.

Gasperini and a Transfer Window That Didn't Fully Win Him Over

Gian Piero Gasperini arrived at Roma last year and finished third, with 23 wins and 11 losses, a record that left the impression of a team with plenty of potential but not the balance needed to climb higher. Before that, he built his reputation over nine years at Atalanta, which he turned into a regular Champions League contender.

He's a coach with a strong personality, which has already led to some friction, as it once did with Papu Gomez in Bergamo or this year with Claudio Ranieri. Italian media report he wasn't entirely satisfied with some of the incoming signings, though he softened his stance in public.

The transfer window is creative but positive. Different from what one might have expected after qualifying for the Champions League, but what's being done looks good to me. Molina is a World Cup runner-up, Castro even took the train to get here sooner, Koulierakis was needed to round out the squad.Gian Piero Gasperini

The comment carries both praise and, at the same time, a hint of doubt about whether the squad is deep enough to handle so many fronts: league, Cup and Champions League.

Malen and Dybala, a Partnership Already Paying Off

Much of Roma's hopes also rest on Donyell Malen. The Dutchman arrived on loan in January 2026 after a poor half season at Aston Villa and adapted immediately, scoring 15 goals in 20 matches and proving key to the team's podium finish in Serie A. In May, the club paid the $29 million buyout clause, an investment already paying dividends after his hat trick on opening day, with Dybala setting up all three goals.

The Cordoba native has spent four years at Roma since arriving from Juventus and, despite rumors linking him to other destinations, including Boca Juniors, he chose to stay in what he now calls his home in Italy. At 32, he remains one of the on field leaders of a Roma side that, with an Argentine accent, dreams of ending a drought of more than two decades.