<p>Giallorossi manager has struggled to build and his relationship with Claudio Ranieri is beginning to fray</p><p>Right from the beginning of Gian Piero Gasperini’s time as Roma manager, there have been people who believed it would all end in tears. Despite a brilliant record with Atalanta, whom he made into consistent top four contenders, as well as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/may/22/atalanta-bayer-leverkusen-europa-league-final-match-report">winning the Europa League in 2024</a>, a section of his new club’s support was opposed to his appointment. “Respect our history,” read one banner outside the Stadio Olimpico last May. “Don’t bring that shit Gasperini to [Roma’s training ground at] Trigoria.”</p><p>Such objections were born more from rivalry than doubts about the quality of his work. Unsurprisingly, given that the <em>Giallorossi</em> were in direct competition with Atalanta throughout most of Gasperini’s nine-year tenure there, he had made various comments that got under fans’ skin.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/apr/20/gasperini-on-shaky-ground-as-flatlining-roma-fail-to-ignite-amid-off-field-tension">Continue reading...</a>