Bharath Rammr
Roma have joined in the race for Manchester United target Franck Kessie, as they are ready to launch a £26 million offer for the Atalanta midfielder, according to the reports from Calciomercato. Chelsea were the first club to show an interest in the defensive midfielder, who can also contribute to the team going forward, by making an initial £21 million offer. However, the Premier League club were unsurprisingly unsuccessful in the offer considering that Atalanta value the player in excess of £35 million. The 20-year-old has been a revelation for the Italian club this season.
Prior to joining the Ivory Coast national team at the 2017 African Cup of Nations, he had managed six goals in 16 appearances for Atalanta. This has helped the club make their way into the top eight, thereby placing them in competition for the Europa League places. Qualifying for Europe would be a major boost for the team which only managed to finish 13th in the table last season. As a result, there is a lot of interest surrounding Kessie, but Atalanta are determined not to let the player leave on a cheap.
The interest from Chelsea soon translated into Manchester United also making an offer for the player. The Red Devils have identified Kessie as the perfect replacement for Michael Carrick once the 35-year-old decides to retire. It is widely believed that the former England international only has a year or two, at best, to offer for the United team. His return has been a major factor behind United rediscovering the winning mentality. They are undefeated in the last 10 matches in all competitions, although the recent game against Stoke ended in a 1-1 draw.
One of the defining attributes of Carrick is his ability to contribute in all fronts. Incredibly, Kessie is viewed as a similar player with his ability to cover a lot of ground due to his incredible stamina. As the interest amount from several Premier League club, it appears that Roma are also ready to take advantage of the player’s availability. Interest from Roma may sound more appealing to the player considering that he can stay in the Italian Serie A rather than move to a new league where he has to adapt his game substantially. The games in the Italian Serie A are considerably slower than in the Premier league, where players do not get much time on the ball.
After a few years out of the Champions League, Roma have once again emerged as a top destination in Italian football. They have been competing with Juventus for the league title in the last few years, and they are closer than ever before in this campaign.
