Roma are showing signs of resilience after a bruising week, but the squad's fragility remains a concern that Gian Piero Gasperini cannot ignore. The 2-0 victory over Genoa on Saturday lifted the club to second in Serie A with 17 points from seven games, a timely response to the heartbreak of losing 3-4 to Real Madrid in the Champions League just days earlier. That European defeat, in which Roma led 3-1 with seven minutes remaining before conceding three times from set pieces, exposed defensive vulnerabilities that have now become a recurring problem.

The injury situation is adding pressure to an already stretched squad. Manu Koné limped off in tears inside the first 20 minutes against Real Madrid and will miss several weeks. Paulo Dybala did not return for the second half of that same game, though his recovery timeline appears shorter. Donyell Malen served a suspension against Genoa. Against that backdrop, Saturday's win carried real significance: Santiago Castro and young full-back Emanuele Lulli, scoring his first Serie A goal, stepped up in the absence of the first-choice attacking options.

Gasperini now faces a quick turnaround. Roma host Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League on Tuesday, with the squad still short of key players. The win over Genoa restores some confidence, but the coming days will test whether the depth of the roster is sufficient to sustain a challenge on two fronts.