Roma appears to still be interested in young Marcos Leonardo, a speedy center forward for Santos and the Brazilian Under-20 national team.
The deal is complicated, and the Giallorossi would still need another man in attack anyway. According to Matteo De Rose, journalist of laroma24.it, who spoke at the microphones of calciomercato.it, broadcast on Twitch TVPLAY channel, it will be difficult to close a deal with Santos.
The interviewee expanded on Roma’s incoming deals and took a little bit of stock, dealing with Marcos Leonardo, Renato Sanches and the end of the negotiation with West Ham for Scamacca (now closer to Inter Milan).
“On Marcos Leonardo, Tiago Pinto and Roma in general let us know that he is one of the profiles on which there is interest,” De Rose revealed. “Roma has been following the boy for some time now, but not much has changed in the last two months. They keep him under close observation, but he is an interest. Today the Brazilian inbound market closes, Santos should find a replacement for this player. Roma, however, is not at an advanced stage of negotiations. “
More Renato Sanches than Marcos Leonardo: “Roma needs center forward “
A more likely shot is the one leading to Renato Sanches. “I think Sanches is wanted on loan and therefore regardless of the disposals. With PSG the relationship is very good, but obviously PSG also aims to make as much as possible out of him. The closer the end of the market gets, the more the buyer has the upper hand. I think he is the midfielder for next season. “
Marcos Leonardo
“Outgoing for Roma are still Spinazzola and Karsdorp. Both, however, do not have much of a market. Then, officially, only Karsdorp appears on the market. If an offer comes for Spinazzola, Roma will give him up.”
“Roma absolutely needs a center forward,” De Rose added. “And he would be needed as early as this month. Mourinho has been working this month with Belotti but he is not the prototypical maneuvering center forward he likes. Having only him it was difficult in the friendly tests to work at his best. There are very few official matches left, Marcos Leonardo comes from a different world, a different culture, he would need to settle in for a moment.”
“The feeling is that he is on the hunt for one or two forwards, a Marcos Leonardo-like one and a more experienced one waiting for Belotti’s exit, because for Mourinho, the former Torino man can also leave right away. “