For Big Rom, an operation costing €80 million looks unreal at the moment. However, the Giallorossi stil have Abraham, And there’s the idea of bringing Ekitiké.
With six points in two matches under the new coach Daniele De Rossi, the Champions League zone is once again within reach, and there’s a game plan significantly different from the previous one. However, during Monday night’s game at the Arechi against Salernitana, something else was noticeable: sterile ball possession (which was addressed by the coach after the game), along with difficulties for Lukaku. Indeed, with the density in the final thirty meters, facing teams that close down and play deep, as Salernitana did, spaces shrink, and the Belgian striker becomes less effective than usual.
Under Mourinho, Roma played a fundamentally different style, involving Lukaku differently. They often relied on the long ball to exploit his physical strength, leaving plenty of room for him to utilize his ability to play as a target man and make runs from behind. Today, however, De Rossi’s approach is vastly different from what was seen just two weeks ago.”
BIG ROM’S FUTURE
According to ‘Gazzetta dello Sport’, Regardless of how Lukaku adapts to the new playing philosophy, the chances of him remaining Roma’s center-forward in the next season aren’t very high. To potentially keep Lukaku in the capital, Roma first needs to secure a spot in the upcoming Champions League, guaranteeing a minimum income of 45 to 50 million.
Retaining Romelu involves an operation costing €80 million, including the transfer fee (43 million euros) and a gross salary, likely for a three-year term. Currently, Lukaku’s salary is around 10 million, influenced in part by the Growth Decree, whose benefits might not be applicable to a potential new agreement in next summer. So, let’s try to understand who could be the next Giallorossi striker
ROMELU’S REPLACEMENT
With the future stil in doubt, Roma’s scouts have been tracking. One of these, as always, leads to Paris and PSG, from which Roma has acquired Wijnaldum, Renato Sanches, and Paredes in the last two years. The focus is now on Hugo Ekitiké, a player Roma has been monitoring for a while, and who has seen little playing time under Luis Enrique. Above all, he fits into the footballing vision the Friedkin family envisions for Roma in the future. Ekitiké is young (he will turn 22 on June 20), justifying an investment of around 15 million. especially if that expense could potentially be covered by the sale of Abraham. Compared to the Englishman, however, Ekitiké earns much less (currently 1.2 million plus bonuses), and even increasing it to 2 for Roma would still mean saving money in view of the UEFA transfer balance…”
