Radja Nainggolan on Roma vs Inter Milan: A True Stress Test

Radja Nainggolan has no doubts about who sets the standard in Serie A right now. For him, Roma’s looming clash with Inter Milan is not just a big game. It’s a measuring stick.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the former Inter and Roma midfielder put the champions on a different level in the title race, pointing straight at the depth of Cristian Chivu’s squad and their recent European pedigree.

“Inter today are a well-built team, they have reached two Champions League finals and have important reserves,” Nainggolan said. “The Scudetto that Napoli won two seasons ago was lost by Inter, in my opinion. Today they have no rivals, but respecting your opponent does not mean not attacking.”

For Roma, that’s the challenge. For Gian Piero Gasperini, it’s the exam.

Nainggolan called the showdown at the Stadio Olimpico the ultimate litmus test for an evolving side still trying to understand how high it can climb under its new coach. Inter, in his eyes, arrive as the finished article; Roma are still being sculpted.

The goalkeepers under the spotlight

Nainggolan went straight to the heart of where this match could swing: at the back, and especially in goal.

He applauded Mile Svilar’s rise and consistency, underlining how secure the Roma keeper has looked.

“Svilar did very well last year and is confirming it,” he noted, before turning to the other end of the pitch, where he sees a very different pressure point.

For Inter’s Josep Martinez, this is a different story. A first full season as a starter. Errors already on the record. The jersey feels heavier.

“Martinez is in his first year as a starter and you feel the pressure,” Nainggolan warned.

In a match of this magnitude, a single mistake could tilt everything.

Dybala as the difference-maker

When asked who could unlock Inter’s defence for Roma, Nainggolan didn’t hesitate.

“Dybala can make the difference in these games, he is a fantastic player.”

In a tie dominated by tactical detail and defensive discipline, the Belgian still sees the value of a pure match-winner. One flash from Paulo Dybala, one pass between the lines or one shot from the edge of the box, and all the careful planning can be torn up.

No experiments on Lautaro

Nainggolan then turned his attention to Gasperini’s choices at the back, especially the plan for dealing with Inter captain Lautaro Martinez.

For him, this is not the night for experiments.

“Ndicka or Balerdi? All of Roma’s defenders are performing, but for a game like this and against such a strong opponent, playing Balerdi can be risky,” he explained. “I would play with those who are most stable.”

The message is clear: stability over speculation. Against Lautaro, one of the league’s most ruthless forwards, Nainggolan believes Roma must trust their most reliable central options, not gamble on unproven solutions.

Mancini’s runs and Roma’s evolution

Nainggolan did, however, recognise how much Roma have changed tactically. He highlighted Gianluca Mancini’s forward bursts as a genuine weapon, a sign of a side that no longer sits and waits but looks to hurt teams in transition and in advanced areas.

He sees a Roma that has grown with the ball and without it, a team more aggressive and more daring, even if it still lacks Inter’s completeness.

Old wounds, old love

Beneath the tactical talk, Nainggolan’s bond with Roma still burns.

He admitted that matches like this still hit him emotionally. The Patro Eisden midfielder recalled how lies from club officials pushed him toward Inter in 2018, a move he never truly wanted after previously turning down offers from Chelsea and China to remain in the capital.

That history colours the way he watches Roma now. There is admiration, but also a sense of what might have been.

He spoke warmly of Gasperini’s attacking approach and even allowed himself a small footballing fantasy: he would have relished playing in this Roma, especially alongside forward Donyell Malen, whose movement and directness fit perfectly with the kind of football he enjoys.

A true stress test for Roma

So the picture is set.

Inter arrive in Rome as the benchmark: deeper squad, European experience, a defined identity and, in Nainggolan’s eyes, the undisputed favourites for the Scudetto.

Roma arrive with something else: momentum, tactical growth, a goalkeeper in form, and a match-winner in Dybala who can twist any script.

For Nainggolan, this is where theory meets reality. If Roma want to break their limits and truly challenge the league’s standard-bearers, it has to start in nights like this, under the lights of the Olimpico, with no room for excuses.