Roma have been in close contact with Leonardo Bonucci and want the veteran defender in Jose Mourinho’s squad ahead of their first match of 2024.
Mourinho has been left exasperated this campaign due to a lack of options at the back, having limited choices due to various injury concerns. Chris Smalling and Marash Kumbulla have been unavailable for months, leaving the club in a difficult spot.
Things will go from bad to worse for Roma next month, when new signing Evan Ndicka heads off to the Africa Cup of Nations, leaving Mourinho with just Gianluca Mancini and Diego Llorente to partner in defence.
Page 18 of today’s Gazzetta dello Sport details how Roma director Tiago Pinto has been in constant contact with Bonucci as he works to have the veteran defender available to Mourinho for the club’s first Serie A game of the new year against Atalanta.
Negotiations are still ongoing, with the Giallorossi offering a six-month contract with an automatic one-year extension linked to Champions League qualification. The 36-year-old wants an 18-month contract and expects regular football as he looks to make the Italy squad for Euro 2024.
Union Berlin are ready to let Bonucci leave on a free transfer next month. The former Juventus man has only played 46 minutes of Bundesliga football in the last six weeks, failing to show his best in Germany.