Roma Lining Up Summer Bid For PSG Midfielder

Leandro Paredes could fall victim to Paris Saint-Germain’s intent to clear their ranks in the summer following another underwhelming Champions League season. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (via Paris Fans), the Argentine’s former side Roma are assessing the prospect of re-signing the midfielder. 

Real Madrid pulled off an epic second-leg comeback to crash PSG out of the Champions League round of 16. Mauricio Pochettino’s men have failed to live up to expectations, leaving the Parc des Princes bigwig Nasser Al-Khelaifi fuming. 

Even though they are on the verge of reclaiming domestic supremacy from last season’s surprise package Lille, lifting the Champions League crown has always been Paris’ main goal. It looks like Al-Khelaifi has had enough as he prepares a mass clear-out at the end of the season.

One of the players that could pay the price for the club’s European collapse could be Paredes. The 27-year-old, who moved to Ligue 1 from Zenit St Petersburg in 2019, has flopped this season despite enjoying Pochettino’s trust.

With the Argentine manager edging closer to a summer exit, many of his underperforming stars are likely to follow. Despite his uneventful showings in Paris, Paredes has a host of suitors across Europe’s top-five leagues, including Roma.

He was under contract at the Stadio Olimpico between 2014 and 2017, earning a reputation as one of the most promising deep-lying midfielders in the market. Paredes’ eye-catching performances at Roma saw Zenit dash out €23m to land his signature in 2017.

Like PSG, the Giallorossi are keen to overhaul their squad following another failed attempt to seal a top-four finish in Serie A. Manager Jose Mourinho has identified the midfield line as a weak link and will be looking to address that problem in the upcoming transfer window.

Paredes’ deal in the French capital runs out in summer 2023. So Paris will be eager to offload him at the end of the 2021/22 season to recoup at least a portion of the €40m they paid Zenit less than three years ago.