Why Gasperini is rebuilding Roma's defence around Balerdi
A 3-1 lead lost in eight second-half minutes against Real Madrid has pushed Gian Piero Gasperini into reshaping Roma's back line for the visit of Slovan Bratislava.
Roma go into their Champions League meeting with Slovan Bratislava at the Stadio Olimpico still searching for a first win of the league phase, and the manner of their last collapse explains why the back line looks so different tonight.
Gian Piero Gasperini has moved Leonardo Balerdi into a central defensive role, with Daniele Ghilardi and Mario Hermoso either side of him, according to Football Italia. It is a notable change from the pairing that started against Real Madrid, when Roma led 3-1 before conceding three times in the final stretch to lose 4-3.
That capitulation came after a 1-1 draw away to Fenerbahce in the opening match, leaving Roma with one point from two games and a defence that has conceded goals in bursts rather than isolated moments.
A back three built on rotation, not just reshuffling
Balerdi's own comments point to a squad with real depth at centre-back rather than a one-off experiment. He told Sky Sport Italia he feels comfortable in any defensive role, adding that Ghilardi and Hermoso quickly understand what is needed, while he also gets on well with Gianluca Mancini and Evan Ndicka.
Naming four other centre-backs he trusts suggests Gasperini has a genuine rotation policy rather than a settled first-choice trio, and that tonight's grouping is a response to circumstance as much as a tactical statement. Balerdi was a deadline-period arrival from Olympique Marseille, joining on loan with an option to buy that can turn into an obligation worth a total of €16 million, which makes his rapid integration into a reshaped back line notable in itself.
Placing Balerdi centrally rather than on either side changes the character of Roma's defensive build. A central stopper in a back three typically covers the widest range of defensive duties, stepping across to either flank and acting as the last line against through balls, while the two outside centre-backs are freer to push into wider areas or engage higher up the pitch.
Injuries forced Gasperini's hand as much as tactics did
The changes were not made from a position of full strength. Paulo Dybala and Manu Koné both picked up injuries in the Real Madrid defeat and are unavailable, as is goalkeeper Mile Svilar. Bryan Cristante returns to the bench after a month out with a knee problem, giving Gasperini at least one more midfield option even if he is not expected to start.
Losing Svilar between the posts alongside two attacking or midfield players in Dybala and Koné adds pressure on the revamped defence to hold its shape without the usual goalkeeping and midfield protection. A back three that can absorb pressure and cover gaps becomes more valuable, not less, when the players screening it are weakened.
Balerdi's comfort level matters more than the label
Balerdi's own framing, that he feels good in any defensive role, is worth taking at face value rather than as a throwaway line. A central centre-back in Gasperini's setup needs to read the game from a more exposed position, managing both the direct opponent and covering runs in behind the wide centre-backs.
His praise for Gasperini's clarity of method, saying the coach knows exactly what he wants and that the squad trains with real intensity, reinforces the idea that this defensive reshuffle is part of an established process rather than a reaction improvised purely for one match. Confidence on the pitch, which Balerdi specifically credited to working under Gasperini, is precisely what a defence needs after blowing a two-goal lead in the final ten minutes against Real Madrid.
Balerdi is also part of a growing Argentinian contingent at Roma, joined this summer by Nahuel Molina and Santiago Castro, taking the group to five players. He described being welcomed by teammates before he even arrived in Rome, framing his own settling-in period as smooth even amid the structural changes happening around him.
The real test of this back three is not whether it can control a smaller Champions League opponent in Slovan Bratislava, but whether it can prevent the kind of late defensive breakdown that cost Roma against Real Madrid. A result tonight would be the first marker of whether Gasperini's reshuffled defence can hold a lead rather than simply build one.