Roma List Two Youngsters to Replace Outbound Veteran

Roma director Florent Ghisolfi stated that Roma would add a defender if Mario Hermoso left, and they are currently focusing on two options in particular, Las Palmas’ Mike Marmol and Racing Club’s Marco Di Cesare, Tuttomercatoweb informs.

The Spaniard has struggled to find minutes due to his initial poor conditioning, as he spent the summer without a team. Then, a thigh injury that sidelined him for five weeks. He has asked out and is in advanced talks to join Bayer Leverkusen.

Roma have earmarked two youngsters to substitute for Hermoso: Marmol is more similar as he’s a lefty, while Di Cesare is right-footed. The former is a Barcelona product and has a €10M release clause. The Giallorossi would rather negotiate the fee than activate it. He is under contract until 2026.

Instead, the Argentine, who has an Italian passport, was a pillar of the U-23 Seleccion in the Olympics last summer. His price tag is similar. He blossomed with Argentinos Juniors and was then signed by Racing, with which he has logged 32 appearances. He has 8 matches in the Copa Libertadores and 12 in the Copa Sudamericana under his belt.

Our Take on Roma, Hermoso, Marmol, and Di Cesare

Double-dipping with two aging free agents proved to be redundant, although physical problems got in the former Atleti defender’s way. They have gone through a few schemes and iterations, but it’s not a big surprise he didn’t work out since they already have a rock-solid left-footed center-back in Evan N’Dicka. He would have been a reliable reserve at best. Now, they need a real Mats Hummels deputy.