He has arrived as a promising player with a difficult task: to fill in the gap left by Mohamed Salah's departure. Judging for his first seven months on Roma, he started paying back all the credit he's been given. When asked about moving from Turkey to Italy, the 20-year-old has said:
"A move abroad was daunting, but Roma made the entire process as simple and comfortable as possible."
That moment of finding himself living alone in Rome and preparing for a season in Serie A was a strange one for Under. He was never expected to become a name that would be recognized across the football world. Under has never had to deal with hype on a nationwide level, and that has helped him retain focus and should help him remain level-headed as his career moves on.
Under's sudden success with Roma is no fluke. The club did a great job with him behind the scenes, easing him in despite local media and supporters growing impatient with his lack of game time at the beginning of his career at the Giallorossi club.
When he signed, fans hoped he could take over from Liverpool-bound star man Mohamed Salah as an inspirational figure. If Roma had thrown him in at the deep end from the beginning of the season, he probably would never have been able to fill such a role.
Behind the scenes, though, they were helping him settle. He had his own translator on hand at all times and was being taught Italian several times a week.
On the training ground, he put in the hard yards, and head coach Eusebio Di Francesco took a gamble on him a few weeks back when switching to a 4-2-3-1 formation. Under was given a key role on the right, and the goals that followed have been special.
Under is suddenly an instrumental member of the team and a fans' favorite. He has scored 6 goals in the last 7 matches he has played. Not bad for a young attacking midfielder on his first season playing abroad. The boy is on fire.
