THE WOLF'S DEN - Tana dei Lupi I

[RomaShield27]

[RomaShield27]

Some mutterings...



With the January transfer window now re-opened, Carlo Garganese investigates what players the Giallorossi need to buy in order to boost their chances of winning the Scudetto this season or next…

A quick glance at the Serie A table would suggest that Roma are having a very successful season - second in the standings, just one defeat in 17 games and an impressive 33 goals scored. However it depends by what yardstick you are measuring Roma by. If you believe they should be challenging for the Scudetto, then the seven point gap between them and unbeaten runaway leaders Inter may be too much to claw back, even with more than half of the season still to play.

So who do the Giallorossi need to buy if they are to realistically challenge Inter?

Roma First Team Squad:
Goalkeepers: Gianluca Curci, Alexander Doni, Julio Sergio
Defenders: Christian Panucci, Cicinho, Juan, Philippe Mexes, Marco Andreolli, Antunes, Matteo Ferrari, Max Tonetto, Marco Cassetti
Midfielders: David Pizarro, Alberto Aquilani, Rodrigo Taddei, Ludovic Giuly, Daniele De Rossi, Mauro Esposito, Simone Perrotta, Ahmed Barusso, Mancini, Matteo Brighi
Forwards: Mirko Vucinic, Francesco Totti

Goalkeeper
I may be in a world of my own when I say that Alexander Doni simply does not fill me with confidence. The 28-year-old has gained a reputation as one of Serie A’s best shot-stoppers in recent seasons and he certainly has an array of outstanding attributes.

He is tall, commanding, imposing, and a superb shot-stopper. However just like another of his compatriots, Milan’s Nelson Dida, he is always susceptible to throwing in a gaffe now and again.

Doni’s decision-making is shaky at best, and his poor positioning often forces him into making saves that are unnecessary. Roma’s low point of last season, the 7-1 thrashing to Man Utd at Old Trafford, was in a large part down to Doni, something very few journalists picked up upon.

As for reserve goalkeeper Curci, he hugely impressed me around four years ago as a teenager and I predicted a big, international future. However he has not developed as well as first thought. A loan move would be a good idea in order to understand just how good the 22-year-old can become.

It is highly unlikely that Roma will replace Doni so talking about replacements seems rather pointless, however I would recommend a move for two brilliant shot-stoppers who certainly will be available in the summer; Fiorentina’s Sebastien Frey and Celtic’s Artur Boruc.

Livorno’s Marco Amelia is Roma through-and-through and has stated on numerous occasions that he would love to play for his hometown club. However the 25-year-old is hugely over-rated in my opinion, and I wouldn’t go anywhere near him.

Defence
Roma’s defence has improved markedly recently, with just two goals conceded in their last six Serie A games. However this was preceded by a disastrous run, which saw them leak a whopping 16 goals in just eight matches. The centre of Roma’s defence with Mexes and Juan is very strong, despite the formers struggles this campaign. The pair are finally starting to establish an excellent understanding together, and when on song there are few better centre half pairings in Europe.

However Roma could certainly do with signing a back-up option as currently they have just the inadequate Ferrari, the ageing Panucci, and the always-injured and again over-rated Andreolli. Players linked to the Giallorossi include Bayern Munich’s Lucio and youngster Nicola Belmonte from Serie B side Bari. The Brazilian would certainly be a brilliant signing, however it is difficult to see how they could field Lucio, Juan and Mexes in the same line-up. Free transfer options could be a good choice here, in particular Fiorentina’s Tomas Ujfalusi, who has excellent Serie A and international pedigree.

As for the full-back positions, the right-hand side certainly needs no work. Roma currently have Panucci, who despite being nearly 35 has been outstanding this season and is now his country’s first choice right back in the position. Cassetti has also been playing well despite some fitness problems, while ex-Real Madrid man Cicinho forms a third option. Given a bit of time, and some defensive training, I can see the Brazilian exploding onto the scene next season.

As for the left-back role it is clear that some repairs need to be made. Tonetto has been a virtual ever-present this season, mainly due to the fact that Portuguese rookie Antunes is the only other natural option in the squad. With Tonetto now 33, and Roma fighting on two fronts, it is clear that a signing needs to be made, probably as early as this month.

Numerous names have been linked to the Stadio Olimpico, including Dutch duo Urby Emanuelson and Royston Drenthe, and Catania revelation Juan Manuel Vargas. My choice out of the three would undoubtedly be the Peruvian, who is known as ‘Catania’s Roberto Carlos’ and has superb ability bursting forward down the flank. Lyon’s Fabio Grosso could be an option in the summer, and the player indeed was born in Rome, however it could be costly to wait that long.

Midfield
The midfield is an area of the team where Roma really need no work in, except to find a replacement for the inevitable departure of winger Amantino Mancini. The Giallorossi undoubtedly have one of the best midfields in Europe, and with De Rossi and Aquilani they have the future of the national team for the next 10 years. With Perrotta and Taddei also offering outstanding support, few teams on the continent can boast such quality.

Furthermore they also possess top-class back-ups in the form of Giuly, Pizarro, and even Esposito, who has failed to shine so far. The only activity that is required of Coach Luciano Spalletti in the summer is to find an adequate replacement for Mancini, who is certain to leave due to his contract running out in 2009.

Three wingers have been linked as substitutes; Real Madrid’s Arjen Robben, Inter’s Santiago Solari, and Bayer Leverkusen’s Tranquillo Barnetta. One must also not forget Vargas and Drenthe, who can also occupy this role.

Robben is clearly the most talented of these options, however his constant injury problems, as well as his sky-high wages and transfer fee will make this move impossible. Signing Solari would be frankly ridiculous, while 22-year-old Swiss star Barnetta I have not seen play since the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where I must admit he did impress me.

The perfect replacement for me is a player that has not been linked with the club; Torino’s Alessandro Rosina. Skilful, pacy, two-footed, with brilliant technique, the 23-year-old ‘Rosinaldo’ would fit in perfectly with Roma’s stylish football. Another player of a similar mould, who certainly would be available for a decent price is Cagliari’s Pasquale Foggia.

Attack
Unlike the midfield, Roma’s attack looks very shallow, with at least two players needing to be brought in. Currently the Giallorossi have just two forwards in their first-team squad – Totti and Vucinic. Part of the problem revolves around Spalletti’s favoured system of playing Totti up-front by himself. Some believe that this penalises Roma in close, tight games against big clubs because it means that they do not have a penalty-box striker to break the deadlock.

I agree with this theory to an extent but at the same token, changing a system that Roma have used for the best part of two years could prove even more detrimental. Either way it is clear that Roma need to sign two more strikers, and the five names chiefly associated with a move are Antonio Di Natale, Adrian Mutu, Amauri, Cristiano Lucarelli and Andrea Caracciolo.

The last two names from this list should be discarded immediately as both are just lumbering front men, who would not fit in with the technical pass-and-move style of Roma. Di Natale and Mutu would adapt immediately and would prove massive hits in the Eternal City. While there is certainly a possibility of the Italian moving in the summer, a transfer for Mutu may be problematic given his love for Fiorentina.

However if the Viola do not make it into next season’s Champions League, everything is possible. As for Amauri, again a lot depends on whether Spalletti is prepared to ditch Totti as the lone-striker and play him in a deeper role. Anyhow I would expect the Palermo star to sign for either Milan, Juventus or Barcelona in the summer.

[maro]

Well, Shield, I think the situation is more similar in Spain than you suggest. Germany's a different proposition because the whole culture of football-crowds is so distinctive and admirable. One of the basic problems, I think, is that strict cup competitions are a disaster for financial planning. This is the reason the CL is run the way it is and the reason a number of the big clubs were anxious when the second league stage was taken out. The biggest clubs basically want to be guaranteed a good chunk of cash from participation in the CL. That way they can base their wages and transfer budgets on relatively reliable income streams. The same situation emerges in a different way in less completely professional sports like rugby (not that the top clubs aren't fully professional, but that the second division in England, for instance, has some semi-professional teams and below that there's not much money in the game. The top clubs in England want to do away with promotion and relegation entirely, as you have, for instance, in the Super 14 or the Rugby League competition in Australia. They claim that they can't really take risks on building for the future because the financial consequences of getting relegated because you've been blooding some young players is too catastrophic. The top clubs in Europe too, then, have turned the CL into something similar - and this, for me, is the reason why we hurt ourselves so badly by alternating good years and bad ones in the closing seasons with Capello and then the following disastrous season. So long as the top clubs can basically rely on CL money, they'll be able to spend quite different amounts on wages and transfer fees. Any team gambling on making it into the top four runs a Leeds-style risk. And of course the same structure applies for those clubs at the bottom of the Premiershit (the situation is a bit different in Italy where the financial gap between Serie A and B isn't quite the same). In this kind of situation, though, the uncertainties of cup competitions are a pain in the arse. Make the cup competitions where the money is won and lost and you'd totally reshuffle the footballing landscape, but you'd also make financial planning impossible.

[maro]

What a shite piece from goal.com. Evidently someone with half a brain and a very large sense of his own worth has seen fit to rework a simpler, sparser piece over on calciomercato.it this morning. That piece had some interesting stuff in it. It suggested the Lucio link while making the interesting proposition that Spags would like to have three top-drawer centre-backs whom he could rotate steadily over the course of the season. I think that's probably true and it's what Ferrari contributed a bit last season. Spags would like three guys any two of whom he could turn to as the situation and fitness and suspension demands. And then the fourth CB is either an option like Panucci who can fill in or a young player who sees very little game time. I could see him spending a surprisingly large wodge of cash on another centre back over the summer. The piece also suggested that Spags hasn't been convinced by Giuly and Esposito and so two wingers will be brought in. Ilromanista, on the other hand, were suggesting that we'd spend big money on a goal-scorer over the summer - someone who could 'guarantee' us a bundle of goals.

[RomaShield27]

All these rumours of bringing in Lucio is interesting. It may well be that it is purely because Spalletti requires a three top-class centre-halfs, and add to that Ferrari's (or is it now, once again, Lada?) uncertain future, but it also reminds me off a piece which was on Il Romanista a week or so ago which suggested that Spalletti is seriously considering switching to a new formation: the good old 3-5-2. This is, apparantley, a theory which is doing the rounds with those in the know in Rome and close to Spalletti. With the addition of Lucio, a back three of Mexes-Juan-Lucio would be very solid at the back (with Panucci as the old reliable back-up, and Andreolli as the youngster who see's little game time). It may also explain why Luciano was so keen on bringing Cicinho to Roma, as he would be the new Cafu, as it were, in the right wing-back position. Tonetto on the left, along with iTunes, and possibly a new arrival for competition. DDR and TheEagle/Pizzaboy in the centre, Perrotta as trequartista, and Totti and Vucinic upfront. This formations most obvious difference from our current one is the lack of wingers, which may work out in our favour should we cash in on Amoanalot Mancini. Of course, it does leave poor old Taddei on the sidelines, but he has filled in admirably as trequartista when called upon in the past.

Fantasy football and wild speculation it may be, and one could argue on why we would want to change a formation and a system which has served us so well since Luciano has been in charge, but 'tis is interesing all the same.

[maro]

Interesting, Shield, if those whispers do come from people relatively well placed. I'd be very surprised to see it - is there a single top side which now plays with a back three? As someone said of English football generally recently, wingbacks seem designed to allow you to play the game in straight lines and it's not the way the game is played at the moment where it's all about fluidity and the interchanging of positions and runs. I can't see it, though I know you love to reminisce about the glory days with Cafu and Candela on the flanks and the Wall and Aldair and Zago and Mangone and the Zebra in the middle. I can see Spags moving away from the current formation to allow him to play three in the middle of the pitch, but it'd be pretty striking to see him go away from a back 4.

[vtec]

interesting posts about the cups. personally, i would like to see the figc hand over the fourth cl spot to the coppa winner. that would ignite a number of teams to perform better in it and would make the games more meaningful. more meaningful games would bring in more attendance, and better tv contracts would follow.

[edge_xeno]

It makes sense that Spalletti will change his formation to 3-5-2, as Shield said, it shows why he bought Cicinho in the 1st place, plus remember that Spalletti Used this formation at his tima at Udinese, Lucio-Mexes-Juan will be very solid, and i doubt that any other team will have a back-line like this, then comes Cicinho who will play on the right, and i would like very much if we bought Drenthe(Who we are linked with), and play him on the left and Tonetto as his back-up. then of course there is the golden Romanista due in the center of midfield, and i suspect that we will buy another stiker like Mutu for example and it will be like this:

.......................Doni
..............Lucio Mexes Juan
Cicinho...............................Drenthe
..............De Rossi Aquilani
.....................Perrotta
................ Totti........Mutu

Vucinic, Panucci, Taddei, Tonetto, Andreolli, Pizarro, Brighi, Cassetti

Pretty impressive i think, i know Shield won't like it cuz the Litm isn't in the starting 11, if it was up for me i would like to see Totti in Perrotta's place with Mutu-Vucinic partnership up-front, but i think it's nearly impossible that we will see Totti in his old role again, and i really want Mutu, he is perfect for this team. Talking about people perfect for this team, i suspect that Mido is the perfect man for this formation, but thats another story we'll talk about it another time .

[p_maldini_3]

can you guys imagine a totti-mutu combination?

damn, it will be ruthless.

[aba_bab]

tecky, leaving good ol ottawa are we? tsk tsk tsk... didnt even make it out one winter.. shame on u

btw... just out of curiousity guys.. if Roma vs Real Madrid is on the 19th of Feb, then WHEN will the tickets start selling in the roma stores in rome??

[RomaShield27]

Yeah, playing three men at the back is relatively unheard of these days among the big teams around Europe. I don't think there's a team in England that plays with a back three, but in Serie A I think both Udinese and Genoa like to field some sort of a 3-4-3, with very indifferent results of course. While I was a big fan of Capello's 3-5-2 back in the day I have to say I gotten used Spalletti's system and the style of football it enables us to play, the only major critique being Spalletti's inability to find a workable 'plan B' formation when we hit that brick wall. You also have to consider the defensive frailties we have seen with our side this season. Our defence has not been up to scratch this season at all. In our last game against Samp we were extremely lucky not to concede, away to Sporting we let in two soft goals, or how about the 4-4 thriller with Lavezzi, I mean Napoli, and of course, when Inter came to the Olimpico. You could argue that it is because of a change to the central-partnership with Juan replacing Chivu, but he has settled very well and has been our best defender, while ironically it has been Mexes who has looked out of sorts and has not replicated last years spectacular form and has not been as dominating as he can be. Then there's our full-backs, were perhaps the biggest disappointment of the season so far has been Tonetto. Not as effective at going forward as last season, he has also looked shaky at the back. Panucci has been in and out of form and, as a whole, our back four has not been cohesive and solid as a unit.

So, with a the addition of a Lucio (or me), would a change to a three-man back-line be an improvement? You do have to consider that its hard to find a top European team which does play with three at the back, the reasons being that games at the top level in Europe these days seem to focus more on intensity and pressing and high-energy running and pressuring more than your opponent (unless your a quality attacking side like Milan or Barca (or us!)). With three at the back you would think there would be more room for the opposition, particularly those who play high attacking wingers or wing-forwards, so questions would have to be asked of a 3-5-2 and its potential to succeed. But, looking at our system and style of play, it is possible that it could be adapted to suit an effective and successfull 3-5-2. We would have three no-nonsense centre-halfs, which would tighten things up, supported by two wing-backs. These wing-backs would also replace where Mancini and Taddei play now by bombing up the sidelines – obviously they wouldn't be as attacking, but as it is now Mancini and Taddei do not really play as orthodox wingers anyway. Cicinho would be perfect for this role on the right, with Tonetto and possibly a new addition on the left (Drenthe/Dede/Mathieu). Perrotta would be still the main attacking force through the centre running like a lunatic on happy pills to support the front line, where Totti would be the focus (say duh), were we'd also having Vucinic playing as a 'power' forward when needed but also dropping out to the wings and coming deep.

When looked at like this I can see a way for the 3-5-2 to work. It could be done. But Spalletti has his preferred formation which he stubbornly refuses to change. But he has to look at ways to find a suitble alternative, something to employ when things just aren't happening the magic is refusing to work. A switch to a 3-5-2 is a bit drastic but not all that impossible to see happening.

[maro]

dibdib, I see your buddy Maniche seems to have gone over to the dark side. We await the inevitable run of expletives. Edge, don't you think that Cicinho was bought to play simply as an attacking fullback in a back four? Shield, I'd be surprised, but we shall see. Surely our defensive frailties most of all reflect the way Spags has our players interpreting their roles at the moment - as he says from time to time, because our attacking plans are based on getting numbers forward it always leaves us vulnerable on the break. I always thought one of the old rules of football was that when one fullback goes the other has to sit whereas we - a little like the Spanish national team - like to get both forward to allow us to keep the ball across the middle of the pitch. And then there's the fact that with two 'holding' midfielders, neither of whom is in any sense a true 'holding' player, we don't always offer enough protection in front of the centre backs. My suspicion is that if Spags does look for a different tactical shape it's going to be something much less radical, still with a back four but with three players in the middle of the pitch, with Perrotta a bit more withdrawn, say, or with someone playing a little as Cassetti did against Samp, tucked in. And then we'll play slightly more defensively and slightly more directly from back to front. I suspect that Spags still thinks that with all of Tonetto, Perrotta, and Taddei on the pitch the balance of the side still works; the question is whether he can get players like Cassetti and Aquilani to contribute the same mix or whether he needs to tuck a third player into the midfield for greater insurance when one or two of them are missing.

[RomaShield27]

Yeah, Maniche is Inters. Doesn't matter he's shite and overated and only people with limited football knowledge and understanding think he's actually a good player. Maro, your probably right alright, but it will be interesting to see how Spalletti plans on changing things, if indeed he does at all, or at the very least how he plans to come up with an alternative formation when needed.


AS ROMA, De Rossi near to renew
Taken from , originally from la Gazzetta.

Daniele De Rossi is near to renew with Roma. The strong midfielder, seen in the capital city as the captain of the future, has reached an agreement for extend contract until 2012, when will arrive to earn 5,5 million every season.

€5.5m per-season. How nice. Anyone know if this is accurate? Salary cap anyone?

[maro]

Shield, the Italian piece I read on this suggested he'd end up earning 5.5mil, ie. in 2012. By which I gather it will be one of those contracts with built-in rises. Fonz or 'tec will be able to tell us what inflation will have turned 2.5mil into by then, but it's not quite so shocking that way and I should imagine he'll start much closer to what's being offered Mancini and has been offered to Philippe and to Chivu.

[maro]

"arrivera' a guadagnare" is calciomcercato's version; I take that to mean "in time" rather than "at once."

[maro]

I'm gutted by this. He's exactly the kind of player we need to play alongside DDR and unleash DDR's attacking strengths getting into the box. If Rosella weren't such a tight bitch I'm sure we could have made this happen.


Rams agree fee for Rover Savage

Derby have agreed a fee with Blackburn for midfielder Robbie Savage as Paul Jewell bids to strengthen his relegation-haunted side.

The former Wales international is now expected to meet Rams officials on Tuesday afternoon to discuss terms.

The 33-year-old had been considering a move after failing to regain his place in the Rovers side following injury.

Blackburn boss Mark Hughes admitted last week that, while hoping Savage would stay, he would not stand in his way if he wanted to leave.

Savage, who had also been linked with Sunderland, lost his place after undergoing knee surgery earlier this season.

Savage joined Blackburn in a controversial transfer from Birmingham three years ago.

The player said he wanted to move to be closer to his family in Wrexham but Birmingham were angered and claimed he must have been tapped up, pointing out Blackburn was hardly any closer to the Welsh town.

In recent years Savage has also retired from international football after a long-running and very public falling out with manager John Toshack.

The tough-tackling Savage began his career as a Manchester United trainee before moving to Crewe and then making his name with Leicester.

[RomaShield27]

I see, a rising contract. Why are we negotiating extending De Rossi's contract ahead of Mancini's? De Rossi is not going anywhere. Why are we stalling we securing Mancini thereby ending all the speculation? It could be a sign that Rosellla is willing to cash in on him if the right offer comes along. Still, with De Rossi and his rising contract, the question remains: salary cap, anyone...? Why does is it not apply to him but it does for Mancini, just like it did with Chivu?

[RomaShield27]

Hey Maro, question for you: three Irish players have played in Serie A since its foundation in 1929. One is Liam Brady, one is Robbie Keane, but can you name the other?

[maro]

Because, in Yankee parlance, he and Totti are 'franchise players' where the others are 'only' 'first-team players'. Chivu was a VIP(layer); De Rossi is indispensible to the fabric and culture of the club. It's about retaining the integrity and soul of the club in an increasingly soul-less world. Or else it's provincial small-mindedness. You decide.

[RomaShield27]

Seems like I stump Maro with my question there and he's gone into hiding, or else is hittin the history books in a desperate attempt to find the answer. Some professor he is.

I read over on The Offside that we are actually playing a friendly game RIGHT NOW, at Pomezia (coached by old boy Odoacre Chierico), this is the starting line-up:

Roma (4-2-3-1): 1 Bertagnoli, 2 Palumbo, 5 Cassetti, 6 Cafiero, 3 Antunes; 4 Brighi, 8 Aquilani; 7 Esposito, 11 Della Penna, 9 Pit; 10 Totti.

In panchina: 12 Delfino, 13 Erba, 14 Massimo, 15 Marangon, 16 Bianchini. All. Spalletti