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Well, it looks as if Roma has found a new center-back. Following the ACL injury of Antonio Rüdiger (making me think that Walter Sabatini sold every Roma player's ACL to the Devil for a pack of cigarettes), Roma have reportedly opened up the checkbook to sign Brazilian Juan Guilherme Nunes Jesus (currently of Inter Milan). Roma will be forking over a cool million euros for a loan, with an obligatory €9 million purchasing clause at the end of the season. If that style of transfer combined with a Brazilian and Inter sounds familiar, that's because when Roma sold the dearly departed Dodo to Inter Walter Sabatini managed to make a similar deal (€1.2m loan with €7.8m obligation to buy after his first appearance). Hopefully this deal goes better for us than Dodo did for Inter.
Considering that he should be considered a third center-back behind Kostas Manolas and Antonio Rüdiger (when healthy), this seems like a solid move on the outset. Juan Jesus has considerable Serie A experience (albeit for an Inter side that has been middling at best for the past few years), and this combined with his twenty-five years of age makes the move seem like a better short- and long- term decision than bringing in Thomas Vermaelen (currently of Barçelona, perpetually of the operating table).
Not to mention that Roma have had success with Brazilians named Juan in the past. So here's to you, Juan Jesus. If you can hold a candle to the OG Juan who stole our hearts, maybe Roma's defense isn't in such bad shape after all.