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With the curtains finally closed on a rollercoaster transfer market - Gianluca Petrachi's first as Roma sporting director - it's time to recap all the deals that went through.
Roma have made some exciting changes to their squad, bringing in some stars of international quality, while several flops have left the club. Here is Roma's summer activity in full - including deals at youth level. In: 1/7/19 - Leonardo Spinazzola (€29.5m, Juventus) 1/7/19 - Amadou Diawara (€21m, Napoli) 1/7/19 - Felipe Estrella (undisclosed, Ferroviaria) 9/7/19 - Pau Lopez (€23.5m, Real Betis) 17/7/19 - Gianluca Mancini (€2m loan + €13m obligation to buy, Atalanta) 20/7/19 - J0rdan Veretout (€1m loan + €16m obligation to buy, Fiorentina) 29/7/19 - Ruben Providence (€0.5m, PSG) 16/8/19 - Mert Cetin (€3m, Genclerbirligi) 21/8/19 - Davide Zappacosta (loan, Chelsea) 30/8/19 - Chris Smalling (€3m loan, Manchester United) 2/9/19 - Wiktor Plesnierowicz (loan + €0.5m option to buy, Lech Poznan) 2/9/19 - Nikola Kalinic (€2m loan + €9m option to buy, Atletico Madrid) 2/9/19 - Henrikh Mkhitaryan (€3m loan, Arsenal) Out: 21/6/19 - Ezequiel Ponce (€3m, Spartak Moscow) 26/6/19 - Andrea Romagnoli (€2.5m, Spartak Moscow) 30/6/19 - Kostas Manolas (€36m, Napoli) 30/6/19 - Luca Pellegrini (€22m, Juventus) 26/7/19 - Daniele De Rossi (free, Boca Juniors) 1/7/19 - Jean Freddi Greco (undisclosed, Torino) 1/7/19 - Flavio Bucri (undisclosed, Torino) 1/7/19 - Rezan Corlu (undisclosed, Brondby) 1/7/19 - Andrea Paolelli (released) 2/7/19 - Umar Sadiq (loan, Partizan) 8/7/19 - Stephan El Shaarawy (€16m, Shanghai Shenhua) 10/7/19 - Edoardo Soleri (undisclosed, Padova) 10/7/19 - Andrea Trovato (undisclosed, Frosinone) 11/7/19 - Ivan Marcano (€3m, Porto) 12/7/19 - Zan Celar (loan, Cittadella) 12/7/19 - Gerson (€11.8m, Flamengo) 13/7/19 - Matias Nani (loan, Central Cordoba) 16/7/19 - Lorenzo Di Livio (undisclosed, Catanzaro) 17/7/19 - Daniele Verde (€1m, AEK Athens) 17/7/19 - Salvatore Pezzella (loan, Modena) 17/7/19 - Lorenzo Valeau (loan, Imolese) 17/7/19 - Alessandro Barbarossa (released) 18/7/19 - Stefano Greco (loan, Vibonese) 23/7/19 - Riccardo Cargnelutti (undisclosed, Modena) 29/7/19 - Gianmarco Cangiano (€1.5m, Bologna) 31/7/19 - Alessandro Bordin (undisclosed, Spezia) 1/8/19 - Elio Capradossi (€1m, Spezia) 6/8/19 - Nicolo Buso (undisclosed, Entella) 7/8/19 - Rick Karsdorp (loan, Feyenoord) 7/8/19 - Christian D'Urso (€0.5m, Cittadella) 9/8/19 - Giacomo Molinari (undisclosed, Trapani) 14/8/19 - Lorenzo Crisanto (free, Alessandria) 14/8/19 - Riccardo Cataldi (undisclosed, Trapani) 16/8/19 - Steven Nzonzi (€0.5m loan + €16m option to buy, Galatasaray) 21/8/19 - Emanuele Spinozzi (undisclosed, Pistoiese) 27/8/19 - Ante Coric (€0.4m loan + €6m option to buy, Almeria) 30/8/19 - Robin Olsen (loan, Cagliari) 30/8/19 - Gregoire Defrel (€3m loan + €9m obligation to buy, Sassuolo) 31/8/19 - Keba Coly (loan, Rende) 2/9/19 - Patrik Schick (€3.5m loan + minimum €28m option to buy, RB Leipzig) 2/9/19 - Maxime Gonalons (loan + €4m conditional obligation to buy, Granada)
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Lorenzo Pellegrini has explained why he is starting to feel like a senior player in the group, having returned for pre-season with Roma.
Pellegrini, tipped by many to become the club's next vice-captain, returned later than some of his teammates due to his involvement with the Italy U21 side over the summer, but now he is back at Trigoria, he has relished the opportunity to get back to work. He told Roma Radio that his first impressions of the sessions under new coach Paulo Fonseca have been positive. “Very good indeed – I’ve enjoyed it very much,” he explained. “The training sessions are very intense. “I knew many of the new arrivals already and I’m getting to know the others now. I think we’re a nice group, with good lads. As a youngster you’re able to take certain things on board, which makes it easier out on the pitch. “I see [Fonseca] as a very direct person and that’s something I like. He tries to make you feel at ease, in order to communicate what he wants from you. I like the way he thinks about football. “Now we have some time to really push on, because we’ve only been working with him for a few weeks and it’ll take time to implement the football that he’s demanding. Nonetheless, the feeling within the squad is positive.” Pellegrini has returned to a Roma that is now far more well-stocked in his midfield position, following the signings of Amadou Diawara and Jordan Veretout, plus the apparent resurgence of Javier Pastore. But rather than viewing this as a hindrance, the 23-year-old is looking forward to the competition for places and how it may affect his role. “It’s not something we’re talking about at the moment because this is only the beginning, also because some players are behind and are therefore training to get back to top condition. We know that, like last year, there are a lot of games to be played and it would appear that playing in midfield will be very demanding, given the way the coach wants to play. So, we’ll all make ourselves available. “I think the attacking phase of play comes more naturally to me but I’m working hard to improve my defensive skills. I’d say I’m a central midfielder, a role where nowadays you need to know how to do everything, from the holding role to playing in behind the forwards.” Despite only being 23, Pellegrini is growing into a key leader in the squad, particularly given that he is one of the few remaining Romans at the club. And he revealed that he is eager to take on a role of more responsibility, especially helping out younger players in the team. “I try to give them support, because I know it’s not easy. It wasn’t easy for me when I went to cut my teeth at Sassuolo, so I need to try and help everyone, such as [Alessio] Riccardi and [Mirko] Antonucci, who have come through at Roma like I did and are now part of the squad and could well become excellent players.” Pellegrini is also keen to lift the morale of the team after a disappointing season, by reinforcing to the new arrivals that they can play a part in helping things improve. “We ‘older’ players are trying to get that message across and so are the staff and the coach. We’re doing good work and preparing the ground to have a very good season. I hope we don’t do worse than last season – we have to improve. “It was a tough campaign last time out, not just for us players but also for the club. We now just need to focus on working hard, playing football and winning games. "I can’t deny that we listen to the goings-on around us but we do need to stay out of that as much as we can and focus on our work – the staff are helping us a great deal in that respect.” Jordan Veretout has revealed that a phone call from Paulo Fonseca was the key factor that convinced him to join Roma.
The midfielder had a number of offers to leave Fiorentina this summer, including from AC Milan, but he eventually signed for Roma in a deal that could cost the club nearly €20m. At his first press conference as a Giallorossi player, Veretout told reporters: “I chose Roma because this is a huge club and I was impressed by what Fonseca said to me. Roma are playing in the Europa League this season and I see this as a step forward in my career. “Roma are a huge club who want to be playing in the Champions League every season. For now it's the Europa League but our aim is to get back in the Champions League. We're going to have to work very hard if we're to achieve that.” Echoing a sentiment from fellow new arrival Amadou Diawara earlier this week, Veretout says he is ready to adapt to the demands of Fonseca's 4-2-3-1 system. “I've played everywhere in midfield and learnt a lot from playing in the holding role. It's made me a more mature player because you have to think a bit more carefully. I still have plenty of room for improvement, though. “In a three-man midfield I have more freedom to get forward. With two I have to be more careful about providing defensive cover.” When asked for more detail on what Fonseca said to him, Veretout painted a positive picture of the coach. “He told me he needed someone with my skill set. He convinced me instantly and I never looked back from there. “The boss likes to play attacking football. He wanted me as a deep-lying playmaker but in that position you need to know how to defend too.” Veretout was responsible for set pieces in Florence, but Roma already have Diego Perotti to take penalties and Aleksandar Kolarov on free kicks. Nonetheless, the Frenchman laughed that he could end up overtaking them in the pecking order, as long as he had the right work ethic. “We'll see about free kicks and penalties further down the line. In the meantime I'll keep practising them!” Like the new Giallorossi Yorkshire Facebook page! Roma have completed their fifth signing of the summer, bringing in Jordan Veretout on loan from Fiorentina with an obligation to buy.
The agreement is similar to the one that Roma found with Atalanta to bring Gianluca Mancini to the capital earlier this week. Veretout has signed a five-year contract, having passed his medical on Saturday along with fellow midfielder Amadou Diawara, whose purchase from Napoli was confirmed earlier in the summer. The cost of the loan is €1m, while Roma will be obliged to pay €16m, plus up to €2m in add-ons, to make the transfer permanent. Former Aston Villa midfielder Veretout, who is aged 26, has spent the last two years at Fiorentina, for whom he played 75 times and scored 15 goals - including a free kick against Lazio in April 2018. The Frenchman told asroma.com: “I am very happy to play for this great club, with so many great players. “I am looking forward to sharing a great new phase of my career with some fantastic teammates. Benvenuto, Jordan. |
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