Corriere dello Sport (D’Ubaldo): Roma want to give Di Francesco the tools (a competitive roster) to fight to the very end on all fronts. Monchi is looking for a new profile on the foreign market. Given that Karsdorp will only return in April and will aim more towards next season, the ideal operation for Roma would be to find a loan, a player who is playing little at his current club and looking for space. Among other features, he must have the profile that Monchi is looking for, which is to be a player who’s ready and prepared; ideally with international experience, the ability to adapt quickly to the attacking football of Di Francesco, and it’d be even better if he arrived from a club that deploys similar football as Roma. So far in the role of right-back, Di Francesco has alternated between Florenzi and Bruno Peres. Juan Jesus even played there once as well as the lone match of Karsdorp before his injury. As the season progresseed, Di Francesco intended to use Florenzi even further forward as midfielder or right-winger, but this isn’t possible until another name arrives. Monchi is seeking a player who is ready that is virtually a right-footed Kolarov, who guarantees running up the flanks and does well in both attack and defence. The new reinforcement of Roma will likely come from abroad, most likely from the Spanish, English, or French league. Monchi still has several weeks to work on this objective, but during his visit to Pallotta in Boston, the sporting director got the “go-ahead” to buy a reinforcement with a budget of around €5-€7 million.
MANOLAS HELD TIGHT – Among the priorities of Monchi is also to ensure continuity in defence, which is currently the best in the league. The Spaniard has been working on the renewal of Kostas Manolas’ contract since the summer and the deal has now come close the conclusion. The Greek defender will soon sign an extension with a wage increase, but there will also be a buyout clause, which the parties are still negotiating as the player’s contract expires in 2019. For the future, Monchi is also following Nicolas Gonzalez, class of ‘98 attacker, who had scored 4 goals in 6 matches.