Former Napoli and Genoa defender Nikola Maksimovic revealed in a recent interview with Tuttomercatoweb that he had been close to signing with the Giallorossi as a free agent in September.
“I could have signed for Roma in September,” said the veteran centreback. “I spoke with Tiago Pinto and Mourinho: it was fine for them because at that moment the transfer window had come to an end and they still needed a central defender.”
“I fit the profile of the player they needed at that moment in time: I can play in a three-man defence, in a four-man defence, I’ve been in Italy for eight years, I speak Italian well.”
“But,” Maksimovic continued, “The club didn’t want to go beyond the pre-established budget due to financial constraints and asked Mourinho to continue the season with the players already at his disposal at least until January.”
“In January, however, I didn’t receive any interesting offers,” he concluded.
