Roma Transfer Rumors: De Sanctis, Doumbia, Ranocchia & More

In the absence of actual Serie A news, and to serve as a distraction from current real world events, we'll turn to the always absurd world of transfer rumors. While winter is not yet upon us, the mid-year (or I guess beginning of the year, actually) market opens in seven weeks or so, which means it's never too early to speculate or pick apart transfer rumors.

As one would expect, the bulk of Roma's winter rumors will revolve around injury replacements/reinforcements and shedding some redundancies, the latter concern primarily revolving around one Juan Manuel Iturbe, who may or may not be offloaded to Inter in exchange for Andrea Ranocchia. Why Inter would want another one of Roma's redundant wingers is beyond me, but Ranocchia would certainly be a decent depth option for Roma's backline, though we have to question if Iturbe would even accept this move, as playing time in Inter is bound to be just as sporadic as it was in Roma.

Given his occasional miscues and his frequent flowery talk for Arsenal, Wojciech Szczesny doesn't seem long for Roma, which has led many to speculate the Giallorossi will attempt to find a long term solution at keeper sooner rather than later. While Morgan De Sanctis has remained professional throughout this season, and it continues to profess his love for Roma, a long term solution he is not, leading many to claim Roma will strike for a new keeper this winter, with Brazilian Alisson and teenage sensation Simone Scuffet among the names most frequently mentioned.

Elsewhere, despite his impressive goal scoring form (three goals in four Champions League appearances), Seydou Doumbia is increasingly becoming a man without a country, as neither CSKA Moscow or Roma are keen on retaining his services; CSKA for financial and Roma for obvious reasons. Now, here is where things get interesting and just a tad unbelievable. Multiple English sources report/speculate that West Ham is mounting a €22 million move for the Ivorian striker, figures which would actually--get this--constitute a profit on one of Roma's worst moves in recent years.

For my two cents, I can't see any of these aforementioned moves happening. While Ranocchia would be a decent depth move, I simply can't see Iturbe giving the OK to Inter, where playing time is no more assured than it is in Roma.

This much is true, however, Roma absolutely has to address their lack of depth at the back this winter. Though they are young, the trio of Kostas Manolas, Antonio Rüdiger and Lucas Digne will need rest as some point in the second half of the season, and with little beyond Vasilis Torosidis and Norbert Gyomber beyond them, we can't simply hope they'll stay healthy and energized for the next six months.