Rome Transfer Market: Ultimatum for the Rising Star—There’s Already an Alternative
Roma, which will be competing in both the league and the Champions League during the 2026-27 season, continues to pursue the offensive reinforcement demanded by the exacting Gian Piero Gasperini, but the main deal remains up in the air. With the start of the league season now approaching, Roma’s management doesn’t want to make a mistake and continues to work on multiple fronts, believing that waiting might lead to better terms.
The top target remains Rodrigo Mora. Porto has rejected Roma’s latest offer, which was structured as a loan with a fee of 8 million euros and an option to buy for 40 million. However, the Portuguese club would like to include conditions that would make the permanent signing of the 2007-born talent virtually automatic. This is a formula the Giallorossi do not intend to accept, preferring to retain the option to decide in twelve months’ time whether to make a permanent investment in the player.
It should be noted that the negotiations for Mora have implications that go beyond the simple relationship between Roma and Porto. The Dragões, in fact, are reportedly working in parallel on the acquisition of Santiago Gimenez from Milan: only with the funds raised from the sale of the 2007-born talent could the Portuguese club make a concrete offer to the Rossoneri, who are asking for a fee of between 22 and 25 million euros for the Mexican center forward. This web of transfer dealings makes the situation even more delicate and confirms just how much Roma finds itself at the center of a web of interconnected transactions, as the transfer window heads toward a frenzied close.
Roma has granted Porto more time to reconsider its position. Jorge Mendes, who is handling the deal, also continues to work toward finding a compromise between the parties. Contacts are frequent, but without a concrete offer from the Portuguese side, the Rome-based club is ready to shift its focus. Gasperini is getting impatient—and he’s not the only one—and there’s no shortage of alternatives, foremost among them Malick Fofana.
