Roma 4-0 Fiorentina: Donyell Malen Hat-trick Leads Roma to Victory

AS Roma delivered a statement performance on Monday evening, closing out the opening round of the 2026-27 domestic campaign with a comprehensive rout in the Italian capital. Spearheaded by a clinical three-goal display from forward Donyell Malen and a relentless creative masterclass from Paulo Dybala, Roma climbed straight to the top of the table as the new season swung into motion. For Fiorentina, the heavy defeat leaves the club sitting at the bottom of the league standings following a difficult opening night under new management.

Italian Serie A football match

Donyell Malen and Paulo Dybala Tear Fiorentina Apart

The match at the Stadio Olimpico began with early warning signs for the visitors as Rodrigo Mora tested Fiorentina goalkeeper David de Gea with a sharp long-range strike. While De Gea kept that initial effort out, and Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar safely gathered a response from Marco Brescianini in the 12th minute, the home side soon seized total control of the fixture. Paulo Dybala nearly opened the scoring for Roma two minutes later; receiving a pass from Wesley, he unleashed a volley that went wide of the target.

The deadlock broke in the 27th minute when Paulo Dybala maneuvered his way into the penalty area before slipping a clever pass to Malen. Malen then turned and struck the ball home, beating De Gea to open the scoring. Malen got his name on the scoresheet again seven minutes into the second half. Dybala once again played the creator, passing to Malen on the left flank. Malen cut inside before firing a shot from a tight angle that De Gea failed to stop in the 52nd minute. Eight minutes later, Malen completed his hat-trick. Dybala was the provider again, sending a pass from the right side of the penalty area. Malen met the ball with a shot that found the back of the Fiorentina net, putting Roma 3-0 up.

Serie A: Donyell Malen Scores Hat-Trick as Roma Rout

Tactical Setup and Squad Integrations Under Gasperini and Grosso

Roma host Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome in what is one of the early fixtures of the 2026/27 Serie A season. Gian Piero Gasperini’s side take on Fabio Grosso’s Fiorentina in a match that carries genuine weight for both clubs as they look to establish their credentials in the new campaign. Roma’s summer was shaped by Financial Fair Play constraints but still brought reinforcements, with Santiago Castro arriving from Bologna and Rodrigo Mora signed from Porto, while Zeki Celik is the only regular to have departed.

Fiorentina arrive with some momentum, having opened their competitive season with a 4-1 Coppa Italia win over Benevento. Grosso has assembled a squad with considerable depth, though questions remain over final positions in several areas of the pitch as the window approaches its close. The visitors carry their own transfer intrigue into this fixture, as Dodô has been linked with a move to Nottingham Forest, while the squad itself features a number of new arrivals who are still settling into Grosso’s system. However, the visitors struggled to contain Roma’s relentless pressure, and Niccolo Pisilli also scored to cap the visitors completely and cement the 4-0 scoreline.

Serie A: Roma vs Fiorentina

Broader Context in the Early Serie A Landscape

The fixture brought together two clubs arriving from vastly contrasting campaigns. Roma finished last season in third place with 73 points under Gasperini in his first year in charge, closing with five straight victories to seal a return to the Champions League for the first time since 2018-19. Fiorentina came 15th with 42 points, their objective shifting from Europe to survival after a dismal opening half of the campaign, prompting a summer of change under their new head coach Fabio Grosso.

With reigning champions Inter having won 4-1 against Monza on Saturday, while Napoli, Lecce, Milan, Atalanta, Juventus and Cagliari have also begun with wins, Roma’s start places them right where their supporters expect them to be. For Grosso and Fiorentina, who arrived having spent a long time battling to avoid relegation last term, the immediate task involves regrouping after a tough night in Rome, while Gasperini’s side turns its attention toward confirming their status as a team that belongs near the top in the new campaign.