Roma turn to untested Gollini as Svilar injury concerns grow before Como
A finger injury is set to keep Mile Svilar out of Roma's trip to Como, handing a rare start to Pierluigi Gollini and adding to a lengthy absentee list for Gian Piero Gasperini's side.
Mile Svilar is expected to miss Roma's away fixture at Como on Sunday because of a finger injury, according to reporting from Sky Sport Italia, Sportmediaset and Gazzetta dello Sport, relayed by Football Italia.
The 27-year-old goalkeeper has not recovered in time, and Pierluigi Gollini is being lined up to deputise between the posts in his place, Football Italia reports.
For a goalkeeper who has established himself as first choice, the loss of Svilar is more than a like-for-like swap on the team sheet. Roma's build-up play under Gasperini has leaned on a keeper comfortable with the ball at his feet, and continuity in that role matters more than it would at a club happy to simply clear its lines.
Gollini returns to unfamiliar territory
Gollini's recent history makes this a demanding recall. Football Italia notes he made only one appearance for Roma last season, conceding in a 1-1 draw away at Panathinaikos in the Europa League group phase — hardly the kind of minutes that build sharpness for a Serie A away day.
His last Serie A outing came even further back: October 5, 2024, in goal for Genoa during a 5-1 defeat to Atalanta, then managed by Gasperini himself. Two years without a top-flight appearance is a significant gap for any goalkeeper to bridge, let alone one stepping into a away fixture at Como with a backline also under strain.
None of this means Gollini cannot do a job. Goalkeepers at his level are rarely short of the technical foundation; the question is sharpness of decision-making under live match pressure, particularly in claiming crosses and reacting to rebounds, areas where rhythm and recent repetition count for a great deal.
A squad list thinning out before kick-off
Svilar's absence does not arrive in isolation. Bryan Cristante is also set to miss the trip to Como, with Marten de Roon expected to come in as his replacement, per Football Italia's report. Losing Cristante removes a central midfielder accustomed to Gasperini's structure, and De Roon's experience should help soften that blow, even if the partnership he forms alongside whoever starts next to him will need time to settle.
Further forward, the picture is complicated by international duty rather than injury. Neither Matias Soulé nor Leonardo Balerdi is expected to start after returning from Argentina commitments, Football Italia reports, which points to fatigue management rather than fitness doubts. Gasperini will likely want both players sharp for matches further down the calendar rather than risking them from the first minute after a long trip back from South America.
Taken together, the absences touch three separate layers of the team: the goalkeeper, a holding midfielder, and two players Gasperini would ordinarily expect to call upon in attack and defence. That is an unusual cluster of selection problems for a single fixture, even allowing for the fact that none of Soulé or Balerdi's situation is injury-related.
What it means for Sunday's approach
A debut start in these circumstances for Gollini is likely to shape how cautiously Roma approach the opening exchanges at Como. Teams tend to protect an unfamiliar goalkeeper by dropping the defensive line slightly deeper and limiting the number of risky passes played out from the back, at least until confidence is established. Whether Gasperini is willing to compromise his usual approach to accommodate that is one of the more interesting subplots of the weekend.
De Roon's inclusion in place of Cristante offers a reasonable like-for-like swap in terms of profile, giving Roma a midfielder capable of screening the back line without drastically altering the team's defensive shape. The bigger uncertainty sits with Gollini, whose readiness for a competitive 90 minutes after such a long gap between appearances will only be answered once the match is under way.
Como's own threat will be tested most directly against that uncertainty in goal. How Roma's rearranged side copes in the opening stages, before any of the fringe absentees are reintroduced from the bench, is likely to say more about the makeshift selection than the eventual scoreline.