According to a recent report from Calciomercato, Roma are attempting to accelerate talks over the potential signing of Manchester United defender Chris Smalling. The Englishman has enjoyed a successful spell on loan in Rome across the last few months, but the hope for the Italian giants is that he will commit to staying on a full-time basis once we get around to the summer transfer window.

With Tottenham Hotspur also sniffing around, though, Roma are very wary of the fact that they might have a small window of opportunity in which to get this deal over the finish line. Smalling is clearly happy at the club and could well sign on the dotted line tomorrow, but there’s always the possibility that he makes the move back to Manchester United if they continue their upward trajectory.

Either way, though, this saga could get very interesting as we look ahead to the last few months of the season.