Story byDe Rossi on Zaniolo: ‘Sometimes, we had to beat him up’ at RomaFootball ItaliaSat, December 6, 2025 at 2:40 PM UTC·2 min readGenoa coach Daniele De Rossi praises his former Roma teammate Nicolò Zaniolo: ‘He’s a good guy and an excellent player; sometimes we had to beat him up in training because he was too strong.’De Rossi’s Genoa will visit Zaniolo’s Udinese on Monday, and the Grifone’s boss previewed the game at a press conference on Saturday. GENOA, ITALY – NOVEMBER 29: Daniele De Rossi, head coach of Genoa, looks on prior to kick-off in the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and Hellas Verona FC at Luigi Ferraris Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Genoa, Italy. (Photo by Simone Arveda/)AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementZaniolo and De Rossi played together at Roma, and the Udinese striker has had a convincing start to the season in 2025-26 with four goals in 11 Serie A games.“I think he made the right choice. He’s gone to a sort of happy island, where you work with serious people and there’s space for nothing else than football,” De Rossi said, via TMW. De Rossi: Zaniolo ‘an excellent player’PARMA, ITALY – NOVEMBER 29: Nicolò Zaniolo of Udinese Calcio looks on during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and Udinese Calcio at Stadio Ennio Tardini on November 29, 2025 in Parma, Italy.