Donyell Malen is Serie A's form striker: the numbers behind Roma's top scorer
Donyell Malen leads the Serie A scoring chart with six goals in 398 minutes for AS Roma. We break down his scoring rate, his share of Roma's goals and the top scorers race.
Donyell Malen is Serie A's form striker of the 2026-27 season. After six rounds, the Dutch forward leads the Serie A top scorers chart with six goals for AS Roma, two clear of a group of four players that includes Inter forward Lautaro Martínez. The league data as of Friday 16 October 2026 shows he has played 398 minutes in six appearances, scored no penalties and averaged a rating of 7.50. His goals have helped Roma to third place, unbeaten and with the joint-best defence in the league. This player profile looks at the numbers behind his season, his share of Roma's goals and what comes next.
Donyell Malen's season in numbers
Six goals in six league appearances is a goal-a-game start, and every one of them has come from open play. Malen has yet to register an assist in the data, which marks him out as a pure finisher in this phase of the season: his job in Roma's attack is to be on the end of chances, and he is doing it.
- Goals: 6 (0 penalties)
- Assists: 0
- Appearances: 6 of Roma's 6 league matches
- Minutes played: 398
- Average rating: 7.50
- Nationality: Netherlands
The minutes tell a second story. Six matches could mean up to 540 minutes; Malen has played 398, an average of about 66 per game. He has played in every round but has often not completed the full 90, yet his output has not suffered.
Goals per minute: Malen's scoring rate
Malen scores a goal every 66.3 minutes, the best rate in the Serie A top ten by a clear margin. Lautaro Martínez, who has four goals in 352 minutes, scores every 88 minutes. Marcus Thuram (three goals in 290 minutes) is at about 97 minutes per goal, while Sassuolo's Vasilije Adžić and Atalanta's Nikola Krstović have each needed 281 minutes for three goals, or roughly 94 minutes per goal.
Among the Roma forward's closest pursuers on four goals, Frosinone's Raimondo has needed 482 minutes, Cagliari's Daniel Maldini 438 and Monza's Gustavo Varela 428, with Maldini and Varela each scoring one penalty. Malen's lead in the race is therefore not only about goals; it is about efficiency.
Share of Roma's goals
Roma have scored 14 league goals in six games, and Malen has six of them, 43% of the team's total. The next Roma player in the scoring data is Matías Soulé, with two goals and one assist. In a side that has scored steadily rather than spectacularly, the Dutchman has been the main source of goals.
The other half of Roma's story is defensive. They have conceded only three goals in six matches, level with Cagliari for the fewest in Serie A. A team that rarely concedes needs a forward who takes his chances, and the combination explains why Roma are still unbeaten.
| AS Roma after 6 rounds | Figure |
|---|---|
| League position | 3rd (Champions League places) |
| Points | 14 (W4 D2 L0) |
| Goals for / against | 14 / 3 |
| Home / away goals scored | 8 / 6 |
| Five-match form string | D D W W W |
| Malen's share of goals | 43% (6 of 14) |
Serie A top scorers race: the top ten
Malen's two-goal lead is significant at this stage of the season. Behind him, four players share second place on four goals, and five more are on three.
| # | Player | Club | Goals | Assists | Minutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Donyell Malen | AS Roma | 6 | 0 | 398 |
| 2 | Raimondo | Frosinone | 4 | 0 | 482 |
| 3 | Lautaro Martínez | Inter | 4 | 0 | 352 |
| 4 | Daniel Maldini | Cagliari | 4 | 0 | 438 |
| 5 | Gustavo Varela | Monza | 4 | 0 | 428 |
| 6 | Adrien Rabiot | AC Milan | 3 | 2 | 396 |
| 7 | Marcus Thuram | Inter | 3 | 2 | 290 |
| 8 | Vasilije Adžić | Sassuolo | 3 | 1 | 281 |
| 9 | Nikola Krstović | Atalanta | 3 | 1 | 281 |
| 10 | Jurgen Ekkelenkamp | Udinese | 3 | 1 | 525 |
Two of the names stand out for context. Inter, the league leaders, have two players in the top ten, Lautaro and Thuram, which reflects how widely their goals are spread: they have scored 18, the most in the division. AC Milan's highest scorer in the list is a midfielder, Adrien Rabiot. Malen's rating of 7.50 is the second-highest in the top ten, behind only Thuram's 7.58.
Background: a Dutch forward settling in Italy
Malen arrived in Serie A after spells with PSV Eindhoven, Borussia Dortmund and Aston Villa, and he is a Netherlands international. He is known for his pace and his ability to attack space behind defences, which suits a Roma side that defends compactly and does not need to dominate the ball to create chances. His current numbers suggest he has found a role that plays to those strengths.
What it means for Roma and the title race
Roma are third on 14 points, two behind joint leaders Inter and Lazio, who both have 16. Cagliari are a point behind Roma in fourth, and AC Milan two points back in fifth. Third place currently means a Champions League spot, but the margins are tiny in both directions.
The data supports a simple reading. Roma's defence has been the best in the league; Malen has supplied the cutting edge. If both hold, Roma can stay in the race at the top. If Malen's scoring dries up, Roma do not yet have a second scorer with more than two goals to share the load.
What's next for Donyell Malen
The coming rounds will test whether he can sustain this rate against the league's best defences and with more minutes in his legs. Lautaro Martínez, a former Serie A top scorer, is two goals behind and plays for the league's most prolific attack. Follow the full Serie A table and top scorers on Yalla Shoot, and check Roma's upcoming fixtures on our matches page.