Panucci faces Roma exit

Christian Panucci seems set to leave Roma, after coach Luciano Spalletti left him out of the squad for the game against Palermo on Wednesday.

The player himself revealed earlier that Spalletti does not respect him and he wants to leave the club, refusing to sit on the bench against Napoli.

Reagrding the present situation, Spalletti said: “Panucci was disrespectful in the way that he acted. I don’t know if he will stay or go. I need to take the will of the player into consideration, and seeing as he does not want to play for the team he has not been called up. We will take a look at the defence again if we decide to sell Panucci.”

Panucci’s contract at Roma runs out in the summer, and although he is 25 years old, there are still a few clubs who would like to have the experienced defender in their ranks. Even Milan have expressed their interest in the player recently, and they will no doubt be monitoring the situaton closely.

Inter 2-1 Roma

Inter Milan knocked holders Roma out of the Coppa Italia after a narrow 2-1 win at the San Siro on Wednesday.

Inter had been poor in their weekend game against Atalanta, losing 3-1, and clearly needed to up their game in front of their home fans. Manager Jose Mourinho handed troubled striker Adriano a start, and he did not disappoint as he opened the scoring after ten minutes to give his team the advantage.

Roma have had a poor season by their standards so far, but they fought back in the second half, and managed to pull level through Rodrigo Taddei on the hour mark. However, as they say, you are most vulnerable after you have just scored. This proved to be the case here, as Roma conceded again after just two minutes, Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring from a rebound to make it 2-1.

Roma tried hard after that to find a way back, but Inter held on to book a place in the semi-final.

“This victory is a very good reaction to the defeat we suffered on Sunday in Bergamo,” Jose Mourinho declared in an interview after the match. “When we play in that fashion, everything is better, both on and off the field. For this reason I am happy, and so are the players, as we don’t like to lose a lot,” he added.

Roma 1-0 Torino

AS Roma beat Torino after a close game at the Olimpico, Julio Baptista getting a late goal to win the game for his side. Torino battled hard throughout and had a few good chances to score, but Roma prevailed in the end as Baptista scored with a spectacular bicycle kick in injury time.

It was an entertaining game, and Roma would consider themselves lucky to get all 3 points, as Torino were the better team for the most part.

Roma coach Luciano Spaletti was pleased with the victory, andpraised his team, especially the defence: “We did well in the game and started with quality and determination”.

“On the field the field there wasn’t much room to show our technique, but with the stroke of a champion we brought home three points.” “It’s about the work of the whole team and the additional attention shown by the defenders.”

AC Milan interested in Christian Panucci

Italian international Christian Panucci has taken the interest of AC Milan, this following the clubs injury concerns, most notably the injury to experienced central defender Alessandro Nesta. Panucci’s agent has revealed that AC Milan has stated their interest in the defender.

The Roma defender though not naturally a central defender made an impressive partnership with Giorgio Chiellini in the Euros for Italy and this may be a contributing factor in the growing interest of AC Milan. Panucci may be an unlikely candidate for AC Milan as he has stated his intention to finish his career in Rome.

Roma to make bid for Eto’o

Roma are poised to make Barcelona an offer for Samuel Eto’o by making a €25m bid for the player along with a contract worth €6m-a-year as they look to lure him away from Camp Nou. Eto’o’s future at future has looked uncertain since the arrival of new coach Josef Guardiola who had gone public with Barcelona’s desire to sell the Cameroonian striker.

It is in Eto’o’s best interest to leave Barcelona to embark on a new challenge as did Ronaldinho, whether or not he sees this as a viable option is entirely up to him but one thing is for sure coach Guardiola does not see him as a part of the Barcelona team he is rebuilding. Eto’o its time to spread your wings.

Silva to Roma; all lies!

If you’re into soap operas, then the recent reports coming out of Spain will intrigue you. Ernesto Bronzetti, has blasted reports in Spain linking David Silva to both Roma and Barcelona as a load of “lies”. A report was released stating that the Valencia and Roma are at an advanced stage in their transfer talks for the midfielder. It is said that Roma would to pay €25m for the player; this would help Valencia to alleviate some of their financial strains.

However, Bronzetti has refuted the reports and accused the Spanish media of lying. He stated that “It’s a colossal lie because Silva will be moving to Barcelona, they are dealing for him.” He further stated that Brazilian “Baptista? He is one of the candidates to wear the Roma jersey but first Real Madrid need to sort out the Cristiano Ronaldo and Rafael Van der Vaart saga.

“Roma are likely to sign two players.” But with Luciano Spalletti failing to lure players to the Olimpico, it remains to be seen who those players will be.

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