Transfer Talk: Roma want Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko?

Roma sporting director, Walter Sabatini, has said that the club is interested in signing Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, but believes that it wouldn’t be easy to capture the Bosnian.

The Serie A runners-up are planning to make a €20 million (£14.1m) bid for Dzeko. Roma are offering a five-year deal worth £60,000 a week to the striker. City signed Dzeko for £27 million in 2011 from Wolfsburg, who still has a lucrative contract that runs until 2018.

Roma are looking to strengthen their attack, after playing a season in which none of their strikers scored more than eight goals. And Dzeko, who dropped down the pecking order at City, has come to light as the primary target for the club.

Bosnian team-mate Miralem Pjanic once said that Dzeko would go “running” to Roma, but the 29-year-old striker’s agent, Irfan Redzepagic, has said on several occasions that his client does not want to leave City.

Sabatini has confirmed that he is interested in signing Dzeko, though he is not confident about completing the deal, as he thinks the player is too expensive for Roma.

“Dzeko is not very close, but Roma are trying to get him,” Sabatini told reporters in Italy. “He’s the right man for us, but tough to get, as he’s expensive.”

According to reports, City will not sell Dzeko willingly, as he played an important role in their 2012 and 2014 Premier League title wins, scoring the equalizer in the final league match of 2012 and inspired them to victory.

But Dzeko’s form lately hasn’t been good, as he scored only twice in his last 23 appearances and just warmed the bench in the last six league matches.

The January signing of striker Wilfred Bony from Swansea City also dented his hopes of making the first team, as the Ivory Coast player moved ahead of Dzeko in the pecking order.

City also have a full contingent of 17 non-homegrown players in their squad. Therefore, they will have to sell one if they are to bring in other foreign targets including Juventus’ Paul Pogba and Wolfsburg’s Kevin De Bruyne.