Roma's Koné on tailored recovery plan as Gasperini plans more advanced role

What happened

Roma are working to bring Manu Koné back to full fitness without needing the transfer market, Corriere dello Sport reported, with the French midfielder following an individualised reconditioning programme at Trigoria during the international break. The aim is to restore his sharpness, rhythm and continuity after a month-long absence in which he missed seven matches, and to have him available for the upcoming game against Parma.

Report details

According to the report, Koné stayed at Trigoria after returning against Sassuolo to follow a personalised path agreed by doctors, physiotherapists and the coaching staff, partly in light of the three muscle injuries he has suffered from February to the present. He is alternating individual sessions with work alongside a member of the technical staff and reducing his load in collective drills, with the exception of the tactical small-sided game. The emphasis is on athletic growth, intensity and the condition of his legs rather than volume of group work.

Gasperini, referred to in the source as Gasp, considers Koné a fundamental part of his project and is said to have a clear idea of how to make him more decisive: pushing him further forward toward the attacking midfield area, closer to goal and more incisive in the final metres. The newspaper points to his brace against Inter as the model — a midfielder who combines physical strength, running and timing of runs into the box, making him valuable in the opposition area as well as in pressing and ball recovery. Gasperini reportedly wants to add new solutions to the attacking play and increase Koné's weight in the final sixteen metres.

The report also notes a curious subplot: the Italy-France match at San Siro, which Koné could have experienced as a France protagonist but as an Inter player given the Nerazzurri's repeated attempts to bring him to Milan, was instead watched from home as a Roma player, with his focus on recovery. The stated dual objective is to regain top condition for Gasperini and to return to availability for the national team under Zidane. First, however, comes Roma, where the Frenchman wants to reclaim the midfield and become one of the protagonists of the Giallorossi's push.