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Amoyal: Seven Serie A players to watch in last month of transfer window
Marco Sportiello (Atalanta)- while Donnarumma and Perin are the most popular picks as Buffon’s eventual heir on the Azzurri, Atalanta’s Marco Sportiello is an intriguing possibility. The keeper born in ’92 replaced Consigli in Bergamo, and quickly established himself as one of the best in Serie A. Liverpool scouted him a few years, while more recently he has been linked to Napoli who are concerned with Reina’s ability to play a full season. The partenopei acquired an option of first refusal for Sportiello as part of the Grassi deal last January, and could decide to have him join Sarri’s squad in the coming weeks. Sportiello has all the physical attributes and talent to take the next level in his career.
Mattia De Sciglio (Milan)- the 23 year old full back was one of the surprise players at the Euro after supplanting Darmian in Italy’s starting lineup. De Sciglio had really struggled in recent seasons (probably not helped by all the coaching changes at club level), but in France he should why he was such a highly rated prospect. Could the recent hype help De Sciglio unlock Milan’s mercato? At the moment the rossoneri’s transfer market is stalled, in order to acquire a much needed center back and midfielder they first need to raise funds by selling a player. With Calleri agreeing to join West Ham, there is one less suitor for Bacca so it’s possible Milan decides to sacrifice De Sciglio to address more pressing needs on the squad (Milan is fairly deep at the fullback position after signing Vangioni). De Sciglio was able to rebrand himself at the recent Euro, it’s not out of the question a top club from abroad takes a gamble on him.
Martin Caceres (expired contract with Juventus)- after winning five scudetti in a row at Juventus, the Uruguayan defender is still looking for a new club. Caceres can play in any role on the defense, and has experience playing in both a classic four man backline as well as the 3 5 2 so in vogue in Italy- he also has yet to turn 30. But his inability to stay healthy and some recent off field issues have impacted his marketability- Caceres may return on Roma’s radar now that Mario Rui suffered a knee injury, or he could be a last minute signing for Milan should they be unable to sign Musacchio. Caceres’ versatility and international experience are worth a gamble on a free transfer.
Nikola Maksimovic (Torino)- in one of the best value deals this summer, Monaco acquired Kamil Glik for around 12 million euro opening the door to Nikola Maksimovic becoming the signature defender on Torino’s squad- but could a big offer make the granata think twice? The Serbian center back has often been described as a poor man’s Leonardo Bonucci for his passing ability out of the backline- not surprisingly this year he has been linked to Manchester United and more recently Napoli and Chelsea. With new coach Mihajlovic likely using a four man defense next season, Torino could take advantage of a domino effect potentially started by Koulibaly joining Chelsea with Maksimovic heading to Napoli.
Amadou Diawara (Bologna)- while Donsah was expected to be the breakout player in Bologna’s midfield last season, Amadou Diawara made a huge name for himself at the age of 18. The defensive midfielder displayed great poise as well as a varied skill set, as a result it wasn’t surprising to see him linked to Bayern Munich as well as clubs in the Premier League. While his destination is uncertain, Diawara is on his way out at Bologna, the writing is on the wall since he failed to report to the team’s summer retreat. He recently appeared on his way to Napoli, but now the partenopei are moving closer to signing Zielinski. Roma could make another attempt for Diawara considering they have great relations with his club.
Leandro Paredes (Roma)- while the Argentine midfielder arrived in Italy with the reputation of being one of the best prospects at the trequartista position, he took his game to the next level playing in front of the defense at Empoli. Roma brought him back to the club so coach Spalletti could see him in person, the giallorossi have been on the fence about using him as a trading chip or have him take a stab at replacing Pjanic. The giallorossi previously turned down an offer from Zenit for Paredes and more recently Empoli expressed interest in re acquiring (with Juventus’ help). Roma could look to acquire Diawara on loan with option to buy while selling Paredes this summer, which would give them the short term liquidity to bolster the defense.
Mauro Icardi (Inter)- the nerazzurri’s recent attempts to sign Gabigol and Oscar (who are mutually exclusive because the club only has one non EU slot available) suggest that Inter is at least open to the possibility of moving Icardi. The 23 year old striker received a substantial raise just last year, and now has a monster offer from Napoli who is flush with cash after the Higuain sale. Icardi has also interest from clubs abroad, so Inter could have a few options if they decide to move him- the odds of this happening would increase substantially if Inter feels good about their chances of landing Gabigol. Unless they sign a big name to replace him, it’s unlikely that Inter’s new owners would want to start their first season without Icardi.
See you next Tuesday for another round of transfer talk…
David Amoyal is the manager of the English page on Gianluca Di Marzio's website where he also writes weekly articles. David covers transfer news for ESPN, and has appeared on numerous radio shows on Sirius XM in the US as well as TalkSport in the UK. David is the former editor in chief of Vavel USA and his articles have been featured in many sites around the world. You can follow him on Twitter @DavidAmoyal
