Roma are on the verge of adding the defender they have been seeking for about a year, as they are in advanced talks to land Diego Llorente from Leeds United. The Giallorossi have come to terms with the counterparties. He’ll join on loan with option to buy, Gianluca Di Marzio reports.
His arrival will allow Matias Vina to depart, as he has been serving as a deep option in the same role. He’ll move to Bournemouth with the same formula and a €15M clause. The Cherries reached agreement with the capital side for Nicolò Zaniolo, but the attacker hasn’t changed his mind about the destination.
Llorente is expected to fly to Italy and take the medicals ahead of his Roma transfer later today. A product of the Real Madrid youth academy, he debuted with Los Blancos in 2013. He played at Rayo Vallecano and Malaga on loan and then was sold to Real Sociedad in 2017.
Leeds United acquired the Spaniard for €20M in 2020. He has collected 59 appearances with the Whites, bagging 4 goals. He was a regular starter in the past campaign, when he featured 28 times, but not in the current one. The 29-year-old drew the nod in the first six Premier League matches but saw minutes just twice in the last four months.
Our Take on Roma and Llorente
They needed another body since they have just four men in the back. Considering they don’t really have a budget because Zaniolo probably won’t leave or will do it very late, a slightly underwhelming but experienced option suffices.
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