Edin Dzeko scored his 105th goal for Roma on Wednesday night, as they beat Hellas Verona 2-1 to keep hold of fifth place.
The goal means Dzeko now occupies that same position on his own in Roma’s list of all-time top scorers. But considering only players from outside Italy, Dzeko is now the best.
Here are the players he has surpassed to reach top spot.
10. Enrique Guaita (42 goals)
Owner of the best goals-to-games ratio in Roma’s history, Enrique Guaita came to the capital in 1933 as a replacement for the next striker Dzeko is looking to surpass, the 106-goal Rodolfo Volk.
In two seasons, Argentina-born Guaita scored an impressive 42 goals in 61 games. His second and final year saw him become the second Roma player ever, after Volk, to win the Capocannoniere award for Serie A top scorer.
9. Miguel Angel Panto (48 goals)
One of the most important players in the first Roma squad to win Serie A in 1942, Miguel Angel Panto was a prolific addition when he arrived from Argentina in 1939.
Panto spent six seasons with Roma, sadly interrupted by the Second World War. Had he not been forced to miss two years because of the conflict, he likely would have reached a half century of goals.
8. Mancini (59 goals)
Embed from Getty ImagesOne of the most memorable players since Roma’s last Scudetto, Amantino Mancini joined Roma from Venezia in 2003. In five seasons, in which he won three trophies, the winger became only the second Brazilian to score 50 goals for Roma.
Undoubtedly the most famous of Mancini’s 59 goals from 222 appearances was his aerial backheel flick against Lazio in his first Derby Della Capitale.
7. Arturo Chini Luduena (62 goals)
The first foreign player Roma ever had, Arturo Chini was among the inaugural squad set up in 1927. Ever-present in the club’s first season, he was their top scorer by the end of it.
The Argentine striker stayed until 1934, having played 180 times, before leaving for Lazio. He never played for Roma’s rivals, and finished his career with Trastevere instead.
6. Mirko Vucinic (64 goals)
Having been given his break in Serie A by Lecce, Montenegro international Mirko Vucinic was snapped up by Roma in 2006. Able to play as a winger or a central striker, he was a key part of the Giallorossi’s attack for five years.
Vucinic only scored three goals in his first season in Rome, but found his feet after that. He reached double figures in each of his remaining four years, before leaving for Juventus in 2011.
5. Rudi Voller (68 goals)
Embed from Getty ImagesOne of the most legendary and instantly recognisable players to have represented Roma, Rudi Voller became a World Cup winner with Germany during his time at the club.
Spending five years in Italy, Voller helped Roma reach the UEFA Cup final in 1991, the same year they won the Coppa Italia. Overall, he scored 68 goals in just under 200 games.
4. Dino Da Costa (79 goals)
Admittedly, someone who played one time for Italy, but Brazilian by birth, Dino Da Costa still sits in Roma’s top 10 overall scorers thanks to his form in the late 1950s.
The centre-forward, who could also play in midfield, scored more goals than any other player in the Rome Derby, until Francesco Totti matched his tally of 11.
3. Abel Balbo (87 goals)
Roma’s leading marksman of the 1990s in the post-Voller era, Abel Balbo already had 10 caps for Argentina when he joined Roma in 1993, after a prolific season with Udinese.
Balbo scored double figures in each of his five seasons in his first spell at Roma. He left in 1998, but returned two years later to become a Serie A winner with the Giallorossi.
2. Pedro Manfredini (104 goals)
The only other foreign player to score more than 100 goals for Roma, Pedro Manfredini was one of the greatest strikers in Giallorossi history.
The Argentine forward became known as Man-tre-dini for scoring more hat-tricks than any other Roma player, and was the top scorer when the club won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1961.
1. Edin Dzeko (105 goals and counting)
Edin Dzeko has become one of the best Roma players not just of recent memory, but of all-time, thanks to his goalscoring prowess over the past five years.
While he took some time to adapt, by his second season he was breaking records for the most goals scored by a Roma player in a single campaign. Now, half a decade since his arrival, he has worked his way right to the top.
Currently the captain of the club, Dzeko has outlined himself as a reliable source of goals. He averages nearly a goal every other game.
As he continues to climb the Roma goalscoring charts, his record as their best foreign scorer will take some beating.
Embed from Getty ImagesDzeko’s Roma tally eventually ended at 119.
Leave a Reply