Gasperini: Serie A is Roma’s ‘clear priority’, Ferguson ‘not very lucky’

Gian Piero Gasperini insists that Serie A is Roma’s priority at this stage of the season, despite their upcoming Europa League decider against Panathinaikos, and has explained why Evan Ferguson is ‘not very lucky’. 

The Giallorossi head coach addressed the media at his pre-match press conference ahead of the final Europa League league phase match, which comes away against Panathinaikos on Thursday evening. Kick-off is set for 20.00 GMT. 

Roma find themselves in sixth place in the Europa League standings heading into the decisive final match, against the 19th-placed Panathinaikos. A win will guarantee a place in the round of 16. A draw may or may not be enough to finish in the top eight. 

“We will try to get a result. We’ve qualified for the top 24 and if we manage to get into the top eight, we’ll be even happier because we get to skip the play-off round,” Gasperini told the press (via TMW). 

“Right now, the clear priority at this stage of the season is the league. Having said that, tomorrow is an essential match and we have to be prepared to the fullest.”

Gasperini on Dybala, Ferguson, need for UEFA rule change

Gasperini was unwilling to reveal any secrets relating to tomorrow’s starting line-up, but he was able to provide an update on star man Paulo Dybala. 

“I’m not able to tell you the formation today. I never tell you, but even less likely today. We’ll see tomorrow, I don’t know yet. Dybala came out of the Milan game with a small knock to his knee, he was doing much better yesterday. He was still feeling a bit of discomfort today, but we’ll evaluate tomorrow.” 

Gasperini was asked how he’s found himself in a situation where he has five strikers in his squad, but none available for Thursday night. 

“Yes, but we’ve got quite a few different situations,” he said. Dovbyk has had an operation and will be out for months. Arena is 16 years old. He made a very positive debut, and scored, but that wasn’t part of the plan. 

“As for the rest, there are some other situations with the players: Malen has just arrived and isn’t on the (UEFA) squad list. It’s all quite clear. What is a little unfortunate is the injury to Ferguson, who got that in the last game against Stuttgart at the very last minute. He’s definitely not a very lucky guy!” 

Gasperini went on to give his review of Roma’s season in the Europa League so far. 

He said: “We’ve tried from the beginning to do well in this competition, and to stay involved in every competition: The league, in Europe and the Coppa Italia. Our goal has always been to play in all of them to the best of our ability. 

“We had a couple of missteps at home at the beginning of the season of course, we also had a bit of extraordinary bad luck, missing three penalties. 

“This is a team that has grown massively in terms of quality, in terms of the play over the course of the season. We had some difficulty in scoring, even more in converting penalties and creating dangerous situations. However, it seems to me that the team is producing much more and getting excellent results, while maintaining excellent defensive stability.” 

Gasperini was also asked about the situation that means he is not able to field either of his new January signings, Donyell Malen or Robinio Vaz, on Thursday due to the fact he is only able to change his UEFA squad list after the league phase has finished. 

“The window has been open since the beginning of January, but you’re not allowed to change your squad list in Europe. The fact is that it’s related to the new format, which is only in its second year. Something will probably have to be reviewed,” he said. 

“Now there is a risk of getting to decisive matches, like tomorrow’s, without having all of your players because some have left and some have come in. Surely something will have to be looked at there.” 

Assessing the task at hand on Thursday night, Gasperini added: “Panathinaikos is a good team that has had an excellent run in Europe. They’ve had a couple more difficulties in the league, but they’re still an organised team that knows how to do well on the pitch. Like us, they also have a few personnel problems.” 

Roma ‘not worried’ about prospect of Europa League play-offs

Gasperini was also asked about his earlier statement about Serie A being his current priority. One reporter suggested that prioritising tomorrow’s match would ease the workload in Serie A, given that a victory means they would avoid an extra two games in the Europa League play-off round. 

He replied: “Naturally, we’ll have to do our best to qualify. We’ve reached the final day and we’re still in (the top eight), so that’s definitely a goal. Having said that, I’m not worried about the possibility of having to play an extra round. We’ve got better by playing the amount of games we have, which has allowed us to grow in terms of quality. I don’t think the extra shifts we’d have to take on would be a huge problem.” 

And lastly, Gasperini commented on his relationship with Panathinaikos head coach Rafa Benitez. 

“A good relationship,” he said. “We haven’t hung out much, but we’ve got to know each other over time. I think he’s a great professional. He’s a coach who has been a winner in lots of different countries. It will be a pleasure to face him and I’m interested to see the result. It will be a proper game either way.”