It’s not often that a manager is serious enough to say, “The situation we’re in sucks,” but that’s exactly where the Giallorossi are these days. Ivan Jurić’s pre-match press statement ahead of tomorrow’s Dinamo Kyiv Europa League game was a real eye-catcher for the ages, and Jurić continued:

“(It’s) a total disaster, but we can improve. The boys must be incredibly hungry to turn things around. They have to become beasts to get out.”

He’s certainly right that the team will have to be hungry to get out of this complete slump in form. As a novelist, I am currently at one of my lowest points; This Inter game gave me no confidence whatsoever that this club can take a real chance to take points from a superior team. It doesn’t even look like the Giallorossi can get three points against weaker opponents; You only have to look at the 1-0 defeat against Elfsborg in their last Europa League game to see that. Add to that the fact that Paulo Dybala will be resting for tomorrow’s game and it looks like a real ‘shut up or shut up’ moment for Ivan Jurić and his men. Win against a side you should win against and a side you should win against need who you need to win against to keep your Europa League hopes alive.

Please don’t let me put all my hopes for this club in the stadium project. A man needs more than that to stay healthy.

What you should pay attention to

Will Roma’s offense work without Paulo Dybala?

Photo by Luciano Rossi/AS Roma via Getty Images

As I mentioned, Paulo Dybala is likely to miss tomorrow’s game, meaning the Giallorossi will need someone else to provide an offensive spark and create the je ne sais quoi of the game to give Artem Dovbyk the chances he needs to give, to score goals. Given their poor form, it’s unlikely that either Bryan Cristante or Lorenzo Pellegrini will fill that role (but guys, feel free to prove me wrong). Likewise, it looks like Matias Soulé is still struggling to get used to playing in the Roma shirt. While he could be Roma’s nominal replacement for Dybala in the starting XI, I don’t think it’s very likely that he will do so in one La JoyaLite performance.

Instead, I’m naming Tommaso Baldanzi as the player most likely to take advantage of Paulo Dybala’s absence from the pitch. The Italy U-21 international impressed at half-time for the Azzurrini, and although he was relegated to a more traditional midfield role at the Giallorossi, it was his assists and goalscoring opportunities that first caught his attention in Italy at Empoli. I’d like to see a nice pass or two from Baldanzi against Kiev tomorrow; If he can get Roma’s offense going even against a weaker team, it could be good news for Roma’s ability to pick up a few wins in league play at some point.

The return of Enzo Le Fée

Photo by Luciano Rossi/AS Roma via Getty Images

Enzo Le Fée was brought into the Giallorossi squad this summer amid much fanfare; His ability to spell Lorenzo Pellegrini, Bryan Cristante and Leandro Paredes led to immediate expectations that the Frenchman would be deployed as Roma’s super midfield substitute. Instead of meeting or exceeding those expectations, Le Fée is struggling with the same injury problem he had during his only season at Rennes. This includes the breakthrough of Niccolo Pisilli, not to mention the emergence of Tommaso Baldanzi as a more traditional midfielder. While we should appreciate this silver lining, his return to the team and expected start tomorrow bodes well for Roma’s ability to overcome this terrible bout of form.

Although Baldanzi and Pisilli have made the midfield rotation significantly more difficult to manage, there is no doubt that in an ideal world, Le Fée will become an integral part of Roma’s starting XI. Pellegrini and Cristante still look fairly fit and while they haven’t looked bad, Roma’s involvement in multiple competitions means there are plenty of minutes left. This game against Kiev represents a great opportunity for Le Fée to slowly reintegrate into the team, with the long-term goal of re-establishing him in the aforementioned “super substitute” role. A strong 60-minute game from him tomorrow will help him get used to playing top-level football again. Anything from him that goes beyond that would be an absolute must for me.

Game details

Date: October 24th

Start: 6:45 p.m. CET/12:45 p.m. EDT

Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Rome

referee: Serdar Gözübüyük