Roma coach Rudi Garcia has ridiculed rumours linking Mehdi Benatia with a move away from the club.

The Moroccan international has been recently linked with a move away from Giallorossi, with Chelsea and Manchester United rumoured to be interested in signing the former Udinese man.

Speaking at a press conference Garcia said that he wants to keep Benatia, whilst also ridiculing reports linking the player with a move away from the club.

”I enjoy the subject,” he said. “I read yesterday that he is 99 per cent leaving, and read today that he is definitely remaining.

“Yesterday I was looking for a replacement, and today I’m not.

”I’ve said many times that I want to keep him, so you simply have to re-read the previous statements on him because they’re still my thoughts.”

The Frenchman also spoke about his thoughts regarding the upcoming season, saying that he believes that his side are the “underdogs”.

”It’s never easy to say how it will be but we’ve kept the whole squad from last year,” he said. “That is a good starting point.

“Additionally, we have added good players and there are now 15 days to fix things on both a tactical and physical level.

‘’This will be an interesting season to be a part of; it will certainly be difficult but obviously a great opportunity to win Serie A.

”To me, we are the underdogs but we will try to make sure we live up to the expectations that people have of us.’’

The former Lille coach then spoke about club captain Francesco Totti and how he will fit in the setup for the upcoming season, saying that a lot will depend on Totti’s fitness.

”It’s an honour to coach him,” he said. “The way he is used and how the eleven is constructed will be evaluated from time to time depending on the game.

“He has to be in good enough shape to impact games.

”When he’s in shape, we know he can do everything because his desire to play is not so dependent on age.

“My job is to make sure he remains in good physical condition.”