Jose Mourinho notes Paulo Dybala ‘knows his body well’ and can alert Roma staff to any issues, but expects a tough test with Ivan Juric’s Torino this evening.
It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino at 19.45 UK time (18.45 GMT).
The Giallorossi are coming off Thursday’s difficult Europa League win away to Sheriff Tiraspol, which involved a long journey to and from Moldova, but they are also dealing with injuries to Renato Sanches, Tammy Abraham and Marash Kumbulla, while Lorenzo Pellegrini and Chris Smalling are only fit for the bench.
“We had very little time to prepare, it is all travel, travel, travel. Nonetheless, we had the opportunity to work a little on the field, we know the difficulties of this game. The coach, the players, their style of football create difficulties for all their opponents,” Mourinho told DAZN.
Surprisingly, Mourinho has picked Stephan El Shaarawy with Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku, effectively mirroring Ivan Juric’s 3-4-2-1 formation at Torino.
“Football today is more complicated when analysing systems. It used to be a more systematic, predictable, but now practically all teams evaluate things in a different way. You can say the basic structure is that, but during a game, the dynamics change.”
Dybala was rested on Thursday and starts today, but again there are always concerns over how long his muscles can last.
“Paulo knows his own body very well, he is very open with me and my staff, so passes on his sensations. I would love Paulo to play 90 minutes plus stoppages, but I know it is unlikely.”
The Portuguese tactician has complained publicly about the fixture list, claiming someone at the Lega Serie A doesn’t like him, but at the same time tries to shrug off these questions when they are put to him ahead of a midweek round.
“I don’t want to think about Genoa, that Genoa played Friday. I cannot allow myself to think about that or my players to hear that.”