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We talked a lot this morning about the respective views/opinions many Roma fans have about James Pallotta’s ownership group. While they’ve managed to keep Roma in Europe for a few years running now, one of the biggest points of criticism was how they dropped the ball this winter, how, with a couple key signings Luciano Spalletti was pining for, Roma may have been able to grab that elusive Scudetto, stopping Juventus’ historic run for at least one year.
While Papu Gomez and Borja Valero drew most of the transfer headlines last season, there was one name that caught fire in the winter, Sassuolo’s jack of all trades forward Gregoire Defrel. The 26-year-old Frenchman was in the midst of a 14 goal, three assist campaign last year (all comps) when he became Spalletti’s object of affection; a seemingly perfect midwinter substitute for Mohamed Salah, one capable of filling in a variety of forward positions.
Roma and Sassuolo traded figures throughout the winter window, with the Giallorossi pulling out once negotiations skirted north of €15 million, a price deemed to much for a midseason acquisition.
Well, here we are at the beginning of July, and with Salah now plying his trade in Liverpool, Roma are once again the market for a winger. For much of the spring and summer we’ve operated under the assumption that Domenico Berardi would follow Eusebio Di Francesco to Roma, and that may very well happen, but the more it drags on the more we hear about the Milan pair, Suso and Deulofeu, and while those would both be fine pickups, they could run north of €30 million.
Which brings us back to Defrel. Word on the streets says that Roma have matched that winter offer, starting negotiations with a €15 million offer for Defrel, whom the Neroverdi reportedly value at €25 to €30 million, which many have speculated would net Berardi.
Either way, with several noteworthy players out the door already, it’s high time Roma starts looking for some immediate help. So, who will it be, Defrel, Berardi, Suso or someone else entirely?