Di Francesco reveals more about Roma's transfer plans

Di Francesco spoke to Sky Sports Italia about his experiences so far with the Giallorossi, revealing more about his plans for the group and what he is looking to achieve over the upcoming campaign.

“After being a player and a staff member, it is a great feeling to become the head coach of Roma," Di Francesco began.

"The warm welcome from everyone will help me take on this new challenge.”

What type of work are you trying to get done here in Pinzolo?

“With the squad we are working on some offensive and defensive concepts, focusing on those two phases to give us an outline, so we are prepared in all situations. We are missing a few key names but we have plenty of young, interesting players who can be a part of our development.”

We have started to see Alessandro Florenzi working with the ball again. At what point is he with his recovery?

“We want him to return as soon as possible, but we have seen what happened before and we don’t need to rush things. How he feels should be the main measure of things, and to wait an extra 15 days is better than to wait 15 days too few.”

Can Maxime Gonalons play with Daniele De Rossi?

“Initially no, but right now we don’t have De Rossi here so it is only him [Gonalons] in the centre of the pitch. Him and De Rossi will be the base in midfield and will ensure the position has continuity. With the sporting director we are looking to assemble 22 starters. Often we hear about the importance of a good bench, and we are searching so we can be very competitive in every position.”

Among the centra midfielders you now have Lorenzo Pellegrini. What is special about him?

“He’s a versatile player, a ‘mezz’ala’ (box-to-box midfielder) of great quality. He can tackle, he can create and score goals, and he’s a guy who is always ready and wants to be the best. I ask a lot of both the young players and the big names, because in football you can always improve.”

Do Roma have the best midfield in Italy?

“It’s a great midfield and I’m happy to have them at my disposal.”

What is your response to the many questions around Nainggolan?

“He is a great player and one we want to have with us: it is my aim and that of the club and he will definitely be with us in the United States. I’m calm, the qualities he has are really important: he can play, he can tackle, he can attack and score goals. All qualities that a great midfielder needs to have.”

Have you spoken to Totti? Can he help you?

“He has to make a decision, he is a legend and should decide his own future. I know that Francesco can be a huge help to us and it will be a big bonus for us to have his wealth of knowledge with us.”

What did Pallotta ask of you when you met in London?

“He asked me for passion, he wants us to be competitive, to frustrate and challenge Juventus: the aim is to improve again, after a great campaign last year. We are looking to add something more.”

Napoli have not changed much: could they win the title?

“They have an identity that they like, for us it will take a bit more time because we have changed more – but I don’t necessarily think that is a disadvantage.”

You have a great friendship with Vincenzo Montella: will Milan be back as a force this season?

“We have to look at the quality, not the quantity, of the players signed – this is the job of the club and we don’t need to rush. We are making targeted purchases, that’s what I asked Monchi. We are trying to be competitive.”

What about Inter?

“They are building, they have a great coach and for them he will be a great addition. Their squad has been added to, so they will be stronger than before.”

What are the objectives of the season?

“We want to win as much as possible. Victory is a word that I like, and I like to hear it a lot.”

What are Roma looking for right now?

“An alternative to Dzeko, two wingers, a left full-back and a central defender. In midfield we have the right players, so we need to look at the other areas.”

What is the difference between Juventus and Roma right now?

“It is difficult to make a call on it now: we have to buy more players, and often people rush to judgement. We need to find the right players for us, then we can talk about it.”

Diego Perotti dealt with a tricky topic very maturely today. He was asked about Kevin Strootman’s Instagram post, which Radja Nainggolan commented on and Mohamed Salah made a bit of an ill-judged contribution to. Perotti said that Radja likes to make jokes – do you agree with that?

“Of course. In my opinion Salah wasn’t very tactful. He could have avoided doing that, given that he was the one that wanted to go to the Premier League. He made a decision and we have to respect that, but that stuff should be left to other people, not the players themselves.”