Edin Dzeko, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pedro, Antonio Mirante, Federico Fazio and Juan Jesus have been excluded from the Roma squad ahead of Spezia.
Paulo Fonseca faces his most delicate match of the season without a host of key players, as he revealed Pedro will be out and that captain Dzeko is injured ahead of the second leg against the newly promoted side this week.
Edin Dzeko, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pedro, Antonio Mirante, Federico Fazio and Juan Jesus have been excluded from the Roma squad ahead of Spezia.
Paulo Fonseca faces his most delicate match of the season without a host of key players, as he revealed Pedro will be out and that captain Dzeko is injured ahead of the second leg against the newly promoted side this week.
Roma were eliminated from the Coppa Italia with a 3-0 defeat by default, even if they had already lost 4-2 to Spezia in the last 16 of the competition.
The second defeat by default of the season, after the Amadou Diawara case from the opener, has left Fonseca’s job hanging by a thread, according to reports in Italy.
He needs a win against Spezia, but Il Corriere dello Sport reveals Mkhitaryan will not recover from a muscle injury.
In addition to Pedro still struggling, Mirante and Riccardo Calafiori are also failing to recover from their respective injuries, while Fazio and Jesus have been excluded from the squad for technical reasons.
In Italy, reports reveal captain Dzeko’s future depends on Fonseca’s position at the Olimpico and claim the Bosnian could be heading for the door after the latest controversy. Sky Sport Italia journalist Gianluca Di Marzio claims the striker is not injured and just left out.
Fonseca will trust Carles Perez and Lorenzo Pellegrini to deliver behind Borja Mayoral, as he seems set to continue with the 3-4-2-1 formation.
Roma (predicted line-up against Spezia):Pau Lopez; Ibanez, Smalling, Kumbulla; Karsdorp, Villar, Veretout, Spinazzola; Carles Perez, Pellegrini; Borja Mayoral