Dzeko believes fresh perspective will ensure he delivers in second season

Edin Dzeko believes everything is coming together for him to show Roma fans what he can really do in a Giallorossi shirt this season.

By his own admission the striker, who joined the club from Manchester City in the summer of 2015, did not enjoy the best first year in Rome – scoring eight goals in a Serie A campaign that had its share of frustrations.

Dzeko would be keen to point out that many of those goals proved to be important – his match-winning header against Juventus at the start of the season, for example, or his first-time finish in the second Rome derby – but nevertheless the Bosnia & Herzegovina international did not quite reach the heights he, or many fans, had hoped for.

Heading into his second season in Italian football, however, Dzeko is confident that he can show supporters what he is really capable of.

A full pre-season with Luciano Spalletti gives the 30-year-old the opportunity to better understand his manager’s wishes and his teammates’ tendencies, while becoming a father for the first time during the off-season has given him a fresh perspective on the game.

“It’s nice. Everything is different now - everything is all about the little lady!” Dzeko told asroma.com, when asked about new fatherhood. “It was good to be away this summer, to spend time with my family.

“It definitely changes your perspective [being a father]. Sometimes if I’m angry or nervous about the game or something else then I come home and everything goes away.”

Last year I tried to help him more than anyone else. The main thing is that he wants to be a part of Roma ... for me, yes, he is our centre forward.

- Luciano Spalletti

On his reflections on last term, he added: “It was my first season in Italy and I had to adapt and that’s why it was a little bit more difficult than perhaps everyone expected. But I think now I am ready for the new season.

“Last year I did not have pre-season with the team, I didn’t have a lot of friendly games before the season, which made things more difficult for me. Now I’m here from the beginning, which is very important for me. At the moment I feel good and I want to continue with the good work.”

History augurs well for Dzeko and Roma: at his last three clubs, Teplice, Wolfsburg and Manchester City, he enjoyed noticeably more prolific second seasons.

At Teplice he went from three goals in his first taste of the Czech First Division to 13 in his second season, earning a move to Wolfsburg where an eight-goal opening campaign was followed by a 28-goal bonanza in a Bundesliga-winning 2008-09 campaign.

That caught the eye of Manchester City, where two goals in his first six months at the club led to a solid 14 goals in his first full Premier League season – when he was often rotated in and out of Roberto Mancini’s starting XI.

But, again, City won the league that season.

Dzeko knows these statistics only too well.

“It is always better!” he jokes, as soon as the words ‘your second season...’ are mentioned. “Yes, I know. The Italian league is more defensive than all the other leagues, and that is perhaps why it is more difficult for us strikers.

“I definitely needed this first year - even if I expected and wanted to be better. But still I scored eight goals, so I want to see what I can do when I am on the top level – I want to see how that would be.”

I definitely needed this first year - even if I expected and wanted to be better ... I want to see what I can do when I am on the top level – I want to see how that would be

- Edin Dzeko

Coach Spalletti has hinted that Dzeko has a great chance of being Roma’s starting centre-forward this term if he shows the right desire and application in pre-season, and five goals in two friendlies so far has certainly not harmed his chances.

More importantly, the striker has been working hard with his boss to improve in certain areas.

Given Spalletti’s history – the boss favoured a false nine for much of his first spell at the club, and used Diego Perotti in similar fashion upon his return earlier in 2016 – Dzeko knows where he has to improve to impress.

“I am not the classic centre forward who waits for the ball in the box,” he said. “I want to move, to find space and lose my marker.

“We [Spalletti and I] are also doing some work after the group sessions – he is doing some finishing work with me which can only help me to get better.”

That is on top of an already busy training schedule: “We are working very hard and doing lots of tactical work too. It is hard, we work every day – two times a day – and we work a lot. But we also have a lot of time with the ball, which of course is what we like the most. That is why everyone is happy and enjoying it.”

"I like to play with Dzeko as he is a very physical centre-forward, a player who always helps the team. He lacked a little luck last season. Personally I consider him a great player.”

- Mohamed Salah

The striker is not one to set individual targets for himself – “I never talk about that sort of thing before the season” – but believes the looming Champions League play-off tie can kick off the club’s season in the right way.

“I think the most important thing for the club, for the fans and for the players is to have these two preliminary games, these qualification games for the Champions League, and to play well in them and qualify for the Champions League,” he said. “Then from that point everything can change in our favour.”

What was noticeable in Pinzolo was just how popular Dzeko is with the fans. Cheered loudly whenever he scored during training sessions, or when he was presented to the crowd at fan events, it was clear that there is a large section of supporters eager to see him succeed with the Giallorossi.

That show of faith has given him confidence that he hopes will show itself on the pitch.

“The fans are here and they are behind me which is good for me, it’s good for my head,” he said. “I will try to do my best.

"I try to work hard in training and hopefully that will help me to be better next season.”