Il Tempo: The huge bluff of Roma (and Spalletti) was revealed yesterday in the transfer market after the Giallorossi have purchased, by surprise, French midfielder Clement Grenier from Lyon. The player arrives on a free loan with an option to buy for €3.5 million, virtually seeing Leandro Paredes sold with another midfielder arriving but it almost certainly will not be Donsah as the deal for Defrel also appears uncertain. There is also a full plate for June: the attempt to bring Kessie from Atalanta and the return of Pellegrini from Sassuolo, but to fund the operations, one between Manolas and Nainggolan must be sold as both are disappointed by the lack of wage increases. In short, Roma continues to disassemble and reassemble their pieces after being forced by budget needs to have continuous cash flow while seeking not to affect the competitiveness of the team. From Sabatini now to Massara, the mission ordered by Pallotta does not change, without the revenue from the Champions League, it was necessary to sacrifice an important piece this winter in addition to the transfer of Iago Falque to Torino and the loan of Iturbe. Eventually, it was decided to sell Paredes instead of Manolas this winter because between the two, Paredes is the one that has attracted a concrete offer, worth more than €20 million. From who? The mystery has likely been solved after his agent, Pablo Sabaag, held endless meetings in Milan. Paredes, aware that he is a back-up to De Rossi and aware the club will likely renew the talisman, has agreed to leave Roma, and will likely go away and earn higher wages. Spalletti did not object to his departure.

Meanwhile, Clement Grenier landed in Rome yesterday on a private flight from Lyon. Born in 1991, the midfielder has quality, is ambidextrous and is a free kick specialist. The player gave a “Daje Roma!” with a Roma scarf and has chosen to wear the number 7. The player has shown great promise as a youngster in Lyon where he also played with Pjanic, and was even close to Arsenal at one point. Suffice to say that over the past three years, he has played a paltry 28 matches in Ligue 1. He was offered to Roma in November by an Italian agent and three days ago Massara has closed the operation. Meanwhile, there is still “black smoke” with Sassuolo as their valuation of Defrel remains too high. Barring a surprise, Pellegrini will return to the Giallorossi this summer, as Roma will take advantage of the €10 million option to buy. But now, Roma need another piece with Paredes leaving, as the proposal of Roma for Donsah has been rejected and the club will look elsewhere. The big acquisition though will be postponed to July: there is an agreement with Atalanta for Kessie, valued at about £30 million. Roma will send Marchizza to Atalanta and he could possibly immediately go on loan to Cessna, while it’s possible Roma will keep an option to repurchase the player or receive a percentage of the future sale. The deal is advanced, but until there is a signature, anything can happen.

John Solano The Editor of RomaPress, John has been covering Italian football as a freelance journalist for over 10 years and has appeared in various publications including ASRoma.com, ESPN, The Liverpool Echo, and more.