Chiesa di Totti Year-End Awards: 2020 Nominees

This time last year, we were putting the finishing touches on our first ever AS Roma Decade in Review series, looking back at all the peaks, valleys and special moments the Giallorossi had to offer during the 2010s. Culminating with our team of the decade announcement, this was perhaps the most extensive series we've ever done (though our year-long salute to Franceso Totti during his final season came close).

While 2020 has felt like a decade unto itself, we're not going to be able to quite match the scope of that series, but we're going to start something new, something we've done loosely and intermittently in the past: year-end awards.

We'll have to come up with a clever name for these awards (something along the lines of the Dundies), but when considering who to cast your vote for, consider everything these players accomplished during the 2020 calendar year only. The link to vote is at the bottom.

Offensive Player of The Year a.k.a. “The Totti”

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Could be goals, assists, key passes, whatever. The Totti goes to the most dynamic and most effective attacking player for 2020. The nominees are...

Edin Dzeko: With 16 goals and 8 assists in all competitions in 2020, Dzeko led all Roma scorers in 2020. No surprise there, right?

Henrikh Mkhitaryan: With 14 goals and 12 assists in all competitions, Mkhitaryan wasn't far behind Dzeko and was probably Roma's most dynamic player in 2020, and if he keeps this up, it won’t be long before we're calling him one of the best transfers in Roma history.

Lorenzo Pellegrini: His numbers fluctuated after Fonseca changed formations, but Pellegrini was still good for four goals and six assists and was among the league leaders in passes into the final third and accurate crosses played during the 2020 calendar year.

Annamaria Serturini: Considering that Serie A Femminile had a big chunk of their season erased by the league's decision not to resume play after the shutdown, Serturini's numbers took a bit of a hit, but with six goals and one assist in 10 matches thus far, she's cementing her case as the greatest player in Roma's brief history in women's football.

Defensive Player of The Year a.k.a. “The Aldair”

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The Aldair will go to Roma's top defender and will include defensive performance and attacking contributions.

Chris Smalling: It may be hard to remember now since he's been injured most of this season, but with 28 appearances, two assists, and more aerials won than we can count, Smalling was a rock for Roma in 2020.

Leonardo Spinazzola: Perhaps the biggest beneficiary of Roma's 2020 tactical change, Spinazzola is playing the best football of his career at the moment, tallying one goal and four assists this season. Spinazzola also ranks among the league leaders in a variety of passing categories, including crosses and passes into the penalty area. 2020 was very kind to Spinazzola.

Roger Ibañez: A little known winter signing a year ago, Ibañez has gone on to make 25 mostly phenomenal appearances for Roma, displaying a level of technique and composure that belies his 22 years.

Tecla Pettenuzzo: The lone nominee from the women's team, Pettenuzzo has blossomed into a smooth, savvy ball-playing defender, chalking up two assists in 10 appearances this season. With an ever-improving sense of timing and reading of the game, Pettenuzzo is quickly becoming Roma's best defender and earned her first Azzurre call-up earlier this season.

Young Player of The Year a.k.a. “The Alberto De Rossi”

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It's tough to really pick out one U-23 player to name this award after, so we'll go with the man who has been grooming them for success for the past several years. This award will go to the Roma player aged 23 or younger who had the greatest impact on the pitch.

Roger Ibañez: As we just mentioned, Ibañez was an unknown commodity when Roma signed him from Atalanta last winter, but once he was brought into the fold during the summer restart, Ibañez never looked back and has quickly become one of the best defenders in the league.

Gonzalo Villar: Another unknown winter addition, Villar made the incredible leap from the Spanish second division to a Serie A regular. Villar is still a developmental project in some respects, but he's impressed with his close control, composure, and technique on the ball.

Annamaria Serturini: The best player through Roma's first two and a half seasons in women's football, Serturini has bagged 21 goals in only 48 league appearances. And she's still just 22-years-old.

Manuela Giugliano: The 2019 league MVP and World Cup standout has recovered from an up and down 2019-2020 campaign to re-establish herself as one of the most dynamic midfielders in the league. With two assists and plenty of chances created through 10 matches, Giugliano is back in top form and is still incredibly just 23-years-old.

Tecla Pettenuzzo: With 45 Serie A appearances under her belt at only 21-years-old, Pettenuzzo brings a wealth of experience to the position and has blossomed since arriving in Rome last year, quietly establishing herself as the Beckenbauer of the Tre Fontane.

Women's Player of the Year a.k.a. “The Bartoli”

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Elisa Bartoli is Roma's most accomplished player, captain, and Roman, so we might as well name it after her, right?

Elisa Bartoli: We'll start off with the player after whom the award is named. Steady as she goes, Bartoli was once again one of the league's most bankable players. Equally adept at going forward as she is defending, Bartoli is everything you want from a captain.

Annamaria Serturini: Recovered from a down scoring year in 2019 and with six goals and one assist has re-established herself as a force in Serie A.

Agnese Bonfantini: Sort of the mirror of Serturini, she scored seven times last season but has been plagued by some bad luck and poor finishing thus far, but remains one of the most dangerous forwards in the league at any given moment.

Manuela Giugliano: Put a down 2019 behind her and has rediscovered her form as a dynamic midfielder capable of scoring and creating from practically any angle.

Lindsey Thomas: With five of her nine goals last season scored in 2020, Thomas was perhaps the surprise of last season, giving Roma another athletic wrinkle in their attack.

Tecla Pettenuzzo: Poised at the back, quick on her feet, and decisive on the ball, Pettenuzzo is every bit the 21st-century center back.

Paloma Lazaro: With six goals and one assist in 10 appearances, Roma's summer signing has hit the ground running in her first year in the capital, already equalling her career-high in goals.

Break Out Player of The Year a.k.a. “The Destro”

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When you're talking about Roma and breakout performances, the first name that springs to mind is Mattia Destro, who, in the spring of 2014, enjoyed one of the greatest stretches in recent memory, scoring nearly one goal per 90 minutes in the second half of the 2013-2014 season.

Whether they overcame injuries, a run of poor form the previous season, or simply a lack of prior opportunities, “The Destro” will go to the Roma player who enjoyed the most unexpected success of the year.

Roger Ibañez: Admit, last January you had no idea who he was and now he looks like Roma's next superstar defender.

Leonardo Spinazzola: With injuries and a failed move to Inter Milan behind him, Spinazzola has emerged as one of the league's top left-backs.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan: Micki wasn't terrible for Arsenal in 2018-2019, but with 14 goals and 12 assists in a Roma shirt during 2020, I'm sure there are more than a few Gunners fans wishing he never left.

Paloma Lazaro: Signed from Fiorentina over the summer, Lazaro is tied for the club lead in goals and has been a revelation in nearly all aspects since seizing the starting striker position this past fall.

Rick Karsdorp: Tossed aside and practically left for dead, not much was expected from Karsdorp when he returned to Roma this past summer, but with three assists—and perhaps even more impressive, 1,000 minutes on the pitch already—Karsdorp has come good in 2020.

You can submit your votes in the form below or via this link. Look for the winners to be announced on December 31st. Thank you for voting!