Lecce 0-4 Roma: Malen scores twice as Gasperini’s side deliver another four-goal statement

Roma maintained their perfect start to the Serie A season with another emphatic 4-0 victory, dismantling Lecce at the Via del Mare as Donyell Malen continued his exceptional opening run under Gian Piero Gasperini.

Malen scored twice inside the opening 23 minutes before Matías Soulé added a third almost immediately, effectively ending the contest before half an hour had been played. Substitute Rodrigo Mora completed the scoring after the break with his first Serie A goal.

The result gives Roma consecutive 4-0 victories following their opening-night demolition of Fiorentina: two matches, six points, eight goals scored and none conceded.

The evening had begun with an unexpected disruption.

Evan Ndicka was named in Gasperini’s original starting XI but withdrew during the warm-up after feeling discomfort in his right adductor. Daniele Ghilardi was promoted into the back three alongside Gianluca Mancini and Mario Hermoso with only minutes to adjust.

Roma showed little sign of being affected.

Their opening goal arrived after only four minutes when Lecce lost control in their defensive third. Paulo Dybala reacted quickly to the mistake and Malen punished it, finishing decisively beyond Wladimiro Falcone.

The Dutchman had scored a hat-trick against Fiorentina on the opening weekend and required less than half an hour in Lecce to take his early-season total to five.

His second came in the 23rd minute.

Wesley advanced down Roma’s right and delivered low across the area, where Malen timed his movement before guiding the ball beyond Falcone.

Lecce had barely recovered when Roma struck again.

Two minutes later Malen was involved once more, finding Soulé inside the attacking phase. Falcone stopped the Argentine’s initial effort but could not control the rebound, allowing Soulé to react first and convert from close range.

Three goals in 25 minutes accurately reflected Roma’s superiority.

Gasperini’s side were faster in possession, more aggressive after losing the ball and repeatedly found opportunities to attack Lecce before Eusebio Di Francesco’s defensive structure could reset.

Lecce changed shape after the interval and finally produced a period of greater resistance.

Their best opportunity came when Kialonda Gaspar attacked a second ball following a set piece and struck the post, while Mile Svilar was required to deal with occasional attempts as the hosts pushed higher.

But Roma remained the more dangerous team whenever space appeared.

Dybala should have made it four on a counter-attack before the final goal eventually arrived in the 65th minute.

Mancini stepped aggressively into the attacking phase and supplied Mora inside the area, with the summer arrival finishing past Falcone to score his first goal in Italian football.

The goal also highlighted the depth already available to Gasperini.

Mora had replaced Soulé only minutes earlier, while Jan-Carlo Simić, Marten de Roon and other summer additions have expanded a squad that is already showing considerable tactical flexibility.

De Roon was introduced late for his Roma debut, replacing Dybala as Gasperini closed out a match that had been effectively decided long before the final whistle.

For Lecce, the defeat was particularly damaging because the decisive period came so early.

Di Francesco’s initial structure could not contain Roma’s movement around the front line, and individual defensive errors compounded the problem. By the time Lecce reorganised after half-time, the score had already removed almost any realistic route back into the contest.

Roma’s start carries the opposite message.

The Fiorentina victory demonstrated their attacking ceiling.

The performance in Lecce showed they could reproduce it away from the Olimpico.

Malen has become the immediate headline figure with five goals across the opening two league matches, but Roma’s early strength extends beyond one forward.

Soulé has contributed from the spaces around him, Dybala continues to connect attacks, Wesley provides aggressive width and the defensive structure has still not conceded.

Two games are far too few to establish where Gasperini’s Roma will ultimately sit in the Serie A hierarchy.

Eight goals without reply, however, represent about as authoritative an opening statement as his new team could have made.

Atalanta visit the Stadio Olimpico next Saturday.

That meeting should provide a significantly harder examination of whether Roma’s explosive opening is merely an exceptional start — or the first indication that Gasperini has constructed a side capable of immediately changing the shape of the title race.