AS ROMA NEWS – Florent Ghisolfi gave an interview to today’s edition of Corriere della Sera. Below are the words of Roma’s sporting director on the club’s present and future plans and market choices:
Florent Ghisolfi, Roma’s d.s. for the past eight months, is it true what Claudio Ranieri said and what has terrified fans, namely that Roma’s market has been blocked by Financial Fair Play and will be for the next two sessions as well?
“Ranieri wanted to be transparent because the fans deserve sincerity. The club signed a settlement agreement with Uefa in 2022, facing a major deficit. It lasts for four seasons and this is the third, the most restrictive one. We have worked on the payroll, dropping it by more than 20 percent, although some salaries in the roster have increased as the contracts stipulated. We have to use logic to keep faith with an ambitious program that includes the 2027 centenary and the new stadium.”
Fans say you win by buying champions and not by logic. You lost in the Coppa Italia to Milan, who had just bought Santi Gimenez and Joao Felix, assists and goals against you…
“We moved within an obligatory financial aspect, which led to 5 disposals and 5 purchases. We made them at the end because we had to wait for the strategies of the other clubs. We had to divest before we bought.”
Fans are asking: but does Financial Fair Play exist only for Roma?
“We are talking about a settlement agreement, that is a private agreement, between Roma and Uefa. To understand: there is a 30 km/h speed limit but we have to go 20 because in the past we went 50.”
Why delude the fans with the names of Lucca and Frattesi and then show up with Nelsson?
“Lucca was never a possibility. We were looking for a vice-Dovbyk and not a starter. On Frattesi we worked: with him, with the prosecutor and with Inter. We came close, in 4 months we will see if his arrival is feasible. His or that of a midfielder with his qualities.”
Salary space needs to be freed up. In June we have to expect “heavy” departures, like Pellegrini, Cristante, maybe Dybala
“The goal is to find sustainable certainties to add to those we already have: Koné, Dybala, Mancini, Ndicka, Svilar, Paredes who is important on the field and in the locker room. With him we are working on the renewal for another year.”
The Friedkins have been owners since August 2020. How do you still ask fans to believe in a project?
“We do not ask for time, because in soccer time does not exist. Roma must bring joy and pride to the fans. And of joys this season – I think of the derby – we have given few. Those who run this club give everything. Which does not mean they do not make mistakes. Ranieri would give an arm to get to the goals Roma must have. I am not talking about transition: we want to win today and at the same time work for the future. The Friedkins love Roma and the stadium project is the clearest example of that.”
Mourinho, De Rossi, Juric, Ranieri are very different from each other. For the future, is there a consistent name?
“We do not want a team that is only young but a mix that includes experience. We are looking for one thing above all: a desire to coach Roma, consider it a first choice. Some coaches are free, some under contract, some more or less interested in coming here. Out of respect for Ranieri, I don’t like to talk about future coaches. He brought us out of the storm. I told him after Milan that he couldn’t solve all the problems in two months and that he has to turn it around with his head held high.”
Some of the most interesting young people can leave from the Primavera at zero parameters. How can this be explained by the desire for programming?
“In a normal context you try to negotiate two years in advance because doing it at the last raises costs. We have to make sure it doesn’t happen again. We have to anticipate. With some players the discussions are long and complex, with many guys we are further ahead, if the player does not see Roma as part of his project, for us there is no problem. Roma has to be deserved. We recreated the scouting sector practically from scratch. You may not believe it, but we are working to build the future.”
Source: Evening Courier
Article GHISOLFI: “Lucca was never a hypothesis. With Frattesi we came close, we’ll see in June. The Friedkins love Roma, the stadium is the example” comes from Giallorossi.net, exclusive news, news and soccer market.
