Il Tempo (Austini): A dynamic mediano who can recover the ball and does not cost much, a talent from a “secondary” or smaller team, or a player who does not find space in a big team — this is the main profile sought by Monchi in the January market. The Spanish director still has to definitively discuss with Di Francesco on the choices to be made to improve Roma, but in the meantime, he realises (and has let the various agents know) what Roma lack most: a presence in the midfield.
The search is wide both in Europe and abroad because Roma still have room for two non-EU players. The idea would be to buy a player who could become the heir to De Rossi and immediately be slotted into the midfield alongside Nzonzi, a defensive mediano that moves well, and also a player who adds things currently not in the roster. The more things you can do well, the better. But to be clear, Roma are not looking for an adaptable trequsrtista who can play a few meters back: such as Rafinha, Fabregas, or Denis Suarez, three jewels who are on on the market, but do not seem to be in the sights of Roma.
A look in the past shows the type of player that Roma had in mind a few weeks ago: the Giallorossi’s hierarchy were informed about the situation on Bakayoko in Milan. He was stuck on the bench and was quite impatient, but now, thanks to the many injuries, Gattuso has him playing and it seems unlikely that he will leave in January. Another name Monchi likes a lot is Samassekou from Salzburg, a player he kept in contact with while he waited for Nzonzi. However, the player has renewed his contract and the cost would be expensive. As said initially, the player must be low cost, so that he can be taken with a profitable formula: a loan with an option/obligation to buy or a permanent deal for an inexpensive player.
Despite the plusvalenze realised in July and August with the sales of Alisson and Strootman —- there seems to be no room in January for super-heavy investments in order to keep the budget in balance. To date, the only scheduled departure is Coric, who will be loaned to a team that allows him to gain experience. But as always, everything can change at any moment, especially when concrete offers start to circulate. To date, no inquiries have been made for either the defence or the attack. But if one were to leave, such as Marcano, or Perotti in attack, then who knows who will replace those names.
