Roma Covet Napoli Director amid Front-Office Overhaul | OneFootball

Roma director Frederic Massara wasn’t ousted alongside Claudio Ranieri last week, but his days at the club are numbered, and Napoli exec Giovanni Manna is the ownership’s and Gian Piero Gasperini’s top option to replace him, Corriere dello Sport relays.

The Partenopei official is highly regarded for the way he has combined youth and experience since moving to Campania. He has had a high hit rate and contributed to signing Scott McTominay, Kevin De Bruyne, Alessandro Buongiorno, Rasmus Hojlund, and Alisson Santos, among others. More importantly, the coach believes they’ll be on the same wavelength, which is not the case currently.

In addition, Manna helmed Juventus’ Next Gen squad for a long time, and Roma want to create a second team as well. On the other hand, he’s under contract until 2029. It’ll be arduous to convince Aurelio De Laurentiis to let him go. Their shortlist also comprises Cristiano Giuntoli, Atalanta’s Tony D’Amico, and Verona’s Sean Sogliano.

The Giallorossi will focus on three roles next summer. They’ll sign a new left-back so that Wesley could return to the right wing and a new pacey attacker. Leon Bailey, who has already left, and Bryan Zaragoza, who won’t stay permanently, didn’t pan out. The final one hinges on whom they’ll sell, either Manu Koné or Evan N’Dicka.

Our Take on Roma and Manna

He’s had his misses too, but it’s tough to properly judge his work, as Antonio Conte’s input is massive. He also had plenty of resources to work with. Unless the Partenopei are for some reason headed in a different direction he doesn’t like, it’s hard to imagine they’ll be able to poach him.