Kevin Strootman completed his transfer to Roma on Friday and his agent reveals “he turned down other clubs.”
The midfielder signed a five-year contract yesterday after the Giallorossi agreed to pay PSV Eindhoven a €16.5m fee.
Kevin Strootman completed his transfer to Roma on Friday and his agent reveals “he turned down other clubs.”
The midfielder signed a five-year contract yesterday after the Giallorossi agreed to pay PSV Eindhoven a €16.5m fee.
It’s quite a coup for Roma, as Strootman had been a transfer target for Milan and Manchester United, among others.
“It was a long and difficult negotiation process, especially between the two clubs,” explained mediator Fabio Parisi on Radio Centro Suono Sport.
“Roma are on the stock exchange and are part-owned by a bank, while PSV are controlled by multinational company Philips, so there were a lot of technical details to sort out.
“As for the player, however, he chose quickly. He spoke to Coach Rudi Garcia and Roma made a very impressive impact on him. It was a confident decision.
“Even if some other clubs had tried to intercept talks, he had already chosen Roma. He was struck by the passion of the fans who greeted him in the city when he arrived for a medical.
“Strootman had spoken to Maarten Stekelenburg, who used the English word ‘huge’ to describe the passion of the Roma supporters.”
The player is only 23 years old, but already has 16 caps for Holland at senior level and 12 for the Under-21 side.
“He is the complete midfielder,” added FIFA agent Parisi. “He has an incredible left foot, physical strength and great character. He can play in a three-man or two-man midfield, adapting to most tactical systems.
“Strootman was the captain of all the teams he played for, including Utrecht, PSV and Holland. His charisma and leadership skills are some of his most important characteristics.”