According to reports from The Express this morning, Roma will attempt to hijack Liverpool and Manchester United’s pursuit of Aston Villa’s Christian Benteke if they miss out on Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko.
The Bosnian international looks set to leave the Etihad this summer and Roma’s Sporting Director Walter Sabatini has already flown into Manchester to try and thrash out a deal. But Dzeko’s wage demands are proving problematic, whilst the Citizens are unwilling to reduce their £20million asking price.
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And according to The Express, who cite Italian news outlet Gazzetta dello Sport, that could see the Stadio Olympico outfit turn their attentions to Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke instead.
The 6 foot 3 centre-forward – who ended last season with a prolific run of twelve goals in 13 appearances – is already a known target of Liverpool and Manchester United.
Liverpool are expected to improve upon a previous £22million bid whilst reports this morning claim the Red Devils could activate the Belgium international’s £32.5million release clause before the weekend.
But the British newspaper claim Roma also are more than happy to meet the 24 year-old’s buy-out fee, with his wage demands expected to be considerably less than Dzeko’s.