Loaned by Aston Villa to Roma in January, Donyell Malen is on a roll. In the space of a few weeks, the Dutch striker has risen to become one of Serie A’s top scorers, to the point of reigniting the debate over the true standard of Italian football.
One must be wary of small sample sizes, but the observation is striking: when a Premier League benchwarmer instantly becomes the lethal weapon of an Italian powerhouse, the question of competitiveness deserves to be asked dispassionately.
A resurgence that raises questions
The Donyell Malen case is striking first and foremost for its statistical impact. Having joined Roma in mid-January, the Dutchman, who scored a clinical hat-trick against Pisa (3-0) on Friday, has already netted 10 goals in 12 Serie A matches, a ratio of 0.83 goals per game. Meanwhile, Lautaro Martinez tops the scoring charts with 16 goals in 26 appearances, whilst Anastasios Douvikas sits in second place with 11 goals in 31 matches. The Dutchman is leaving the competition in his wake: only the Argentine (0.62) manages to keep up, albeit from a distance, with the blistering pace set by the former Villa player over the past three months.
What is striking is the stark contrast with his less-than-glorious spell at Aston Villa. Signed in January 2025 following his three-and-a-half-year spell at Dortmund, the Dutchman managed just 10 goals in 44 appearances before moving to the Eternal City. Seeing him surpass that total in less than three months inevitably fuels the idea of a more permissive league, or at least one far more welcoming to this type of player. The Roman context helps, with Gian Piero Gasperini appointed in June 2025 and a system that favours deep runs, but such a rapid rise remains a textbook case.
A sign of decline or simply a fluke?
It is tempting to see this as proof that Serie A is losing its competitive edge. The debate is heating up on the other side of the Alps, all the more so following the Nazionale’s third consecutive failure to qualify for the World Cup. In the crisis report presented following this failure, the Italian Football Federation highlighted structural flaws: a lack of opportunities for Italian players, a fragile financial model and chronic shortcomings in development. The problem therefore goes far beyond the league’s average age (26.6 years, compared to 26.4 years in England).
The fact remains that the Malen phenomenon serves as a wake-up call. When Scott McTominay, a former utility player at Manchester United, is named Serie A MVP for the 2024–25 season, it sends a strong signal. When Luka Modrić, at the age of 40, still exerts a physical influence on matches, doubts begin to grow. And when Malen, who has never really made his mark anywhere, performs so well for Roma, the debate becomes legitimate. We must remain cautious, as a run of form can fizzle out just as quickly as it began – as with Mika Biereth at Monaco – but this success highlights a reality: in Italy, an established player, used to his full potential, can very quickly appear to be performing above his actual level.
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