It looks set to be another hot summer at Trigoria as Roma reshape their squad for next season. Along with the difficult decisions to be made on Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi, president James Pallotta and Sporting Director (will it be Walter Sabatini?) must also make choices on the future of Miralem Pjanic.

With the Bosnian international’s agent receiving offers from Barcelona, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, it seems the €38 million buy-out clause will present no problem for potential suitors. Pallotta has stated recently that the 26-year-old will not be leaving the Italian capital this summer, but signals that arrive from inside the club suggest otherwise.  

Along with Pjanic, his Bosnian teammate Dzeko could also make the move away from the Eternal City. The player, who the giallorossi put a down-payment of €15 million on last summer from Manchester City, may not take up their offer to purchase him outright at the end of the season thus removing a salary of €10 million gross until 2020 from the payroll. A name linked as potential replacement is Radamel Falcao. The Colombian striker, who was nick- named after the former Roma legend, has failed to find any consistent form since damaging cruciate knee ligaments in 2014 whilst playing for Monaco.  

It could make economic sense however, for the giallorossi to perhaps take a punt on a player desperate to get back to something like the form he showed whilst at Porto and Atletico Madrid. The problem will be his non EU status and his reported salary of €7 million net a season. Falcao will leave Chelsea in June and return to Monaco where he will assess future options; one of those options remains Italy.


Steve Mitchell @barafundler