Roma Interested in Manchester United Striker Zirkzee | OneFootball

Roma owner Dan Friedkin has spent some time in Italy to compliment Gian Piero Gasperini for the early results and start jotting down the strategy for January, which could comprise an attempt to bring Joshua Zirkzee back to Serie A, La Gazzetta dello Sport informs.

Unlike Rasmus Hojlund, the Dutchman stayed put last summer, but he has played just 82 minutes following the additions of Matheus Cunha, Benjamin Sesko, and Bryan Mbuemo. Manchester United paid €42.5M to acquire from Bologna. He was a regular last season, despite not putting up great numbers,  amassing 49 appearances and scoring 7 times.

The Roma manager was a big fan of Zirkzee in the past, but Atalanta didn’t manage to sign him in his various stops, most recently when Gianluca Scamacca got seriously hurt last summer. The center-forward will ask to leave, at least temporarily, to play more to have a shot at being called up for the World Cup. He makes €3.6M annually, €1.8M for half a season, which wouldn’t be a problem for the Giallorossi.

The capital club will bolster its frontline in January. However, they are waiting to see whether Artem Dovbyk or Evan Ferguson will get going and how Leon Bailley will return from injury before deciding which type of player to prioritize.

Our Take on Roma and Zirkzee

He’s an easy bet to bounce back elsewhere, especially back in Italy under an offensive-minded coach. Though, it’s hard to imagine they’d carry three center-forwards. Plus, they’d have to obtain at least an option to buy to avoid the same thing that happened with Alexis Saelemaekers. He wouldn’t be cheap despite his struggles, and they aren’t exactly swimming in gold.