Dries Mertens has been proposed to Roma by his entourage, as the talks with Napoli keep stalling. The Giallorossi will consider him. Although, they will carefully evaluate the potential signing before eventually pulling the trigger.
According to Corriere dello Sport, the age and requests of the attacker are not particularly palatable. He demands €2.6M per year and a €1.4M signing bonus, plus commissions for his agents. The Partenopei offered lower figures, and he is nearing an exit. Lazio are also in the running because of the connection with Maurizio Sarri. He will likely pick the side that will allow him to play the most. Valencia are a possible landing spot as well after hiring Gennaro Gattuso, Il Mattino informs.
Roma do plan to add another striker, either Mertens or somebody else. Felix Afena-Gyan will likely head elsewhere, either in a swap or on loan. Stephan El Shaarawy and Carles Peres are on the chopping block. Eldor Shomurodov might wind up being the only backup. Their management is keeping tabs on Stuttgart’s Sasa Kalajdzic too, whom they eyed in the past.
Our Take on Mertens and Roma
The reservations are legitimate, but the Belgian is a proven commodity and finished strong once he re-gained consistent playing time last season. He would be a perfect fit next to Tammy Abraham. He would provide the verticality that has been lacking at times. The Giallorossi have not been shy when it comes to bringing in veterans. It would not be surprising if they ultimately opted to sign the Azzurri star.
?? #Roma, ecco #Matic: il nuovo acquisto è arrivato in città
? @dariomarchetti7 pic.twitter.com/G4TqcjFgzo— TUTTOmercatoWEB (@TuttoMercatoWeb) June 13, 2022