Roma have revealed that they turned down a bid of €70 million for midfield ace Daniele De Rossi from Premier League club Chelsea.
Speaking to Radio Mana Mana club director Bruno Conti advised “De Rossi will stay at Roma, no doubt about it. I would like to remind people of the following: Chelsea offered €70m for him, a lot of money, but [then president] Rosella Sensi turned it down.”
Chelsea have been known as big admirers of the 28 year-old Italian international and rumours of big money bids to take him to the Premiership have been circulating for the past couple of years. However, this is the first time anyone connected with Roma has confirmed an official bid.
De Rossi has spent 10 years in the Roma first team but that run is looking like coming to an end as his current contract expires in the summer and he is free to talk to other clubs in January.
This saga has dragged on for a number of months now without any sign of a resolution and the giallorossi could face losing one of the prized assets for nothing at the end of the season.
If that happens then the €70m that the previous president turned down for him would look very foolish indeed.
Conti has been adamant that De Rossi will not leave the Stadio Olimpico, however the player himself has given no such assurances.
Although De Rossi is a Roma man through and through, the prospect of plying his trade in the Premier League or La Liga in his peak years may prove to be a challenge to tempting to resist.
Walter Sabatini has also added his Euro’s worth by stating that getting De Rossi to sign a new contract is the club’s top priority. The trouble is that he’s been saying that since the summer and we are no further down the track and time is running out.
If the club want to keep him then they need to give him, within reason, whatever he wants if not then he should have gone in the summer. I don’t believe that De Rossi’s demands have changed so the ball is firmly in the club’s court and they need to decide one way or another.
I remember writing an article like this about two or three months ago, which shows how far we have come. Not very far at all.
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