Spalletti on the tour, targets, Dzeko, Manolas and Juventus

The boss was asked about the facilities in the United States, his current assessment of the squad along with plenty of transfer matters.

See the full transcript below.

This is your second day in Boston. What's your first impression?

“I haven't been able to assess it all properly yet. We arrived yesterday [Saturday] and we're training for the first time today [Sunday]. We need to look at everything closely and work out our needs, although I'm sure the club will have taken all factors into consideration. This is a crucial period for us, though rather a long one. We'll need a break once we get back to Italy after 5 August and then we'll get straight into the serious business. We need this time to work and it's important we have everything in place for us to do that.”

What sort of improvement are you hoping to see from the team over the next fortnight?

"I've spoken before about the quality of our players and of course who you have to work with is very important, but how well you work matters too. How well you play also matters, as does the team's character and their understanding. All those things matter and they all come together during this period. The players need to know that if they train well they can achieve more than the sum of their parts and their individual quality – which is already excellent.”

Your international players have returned to the fold now. Have you spoken to them at all?

“Yes, I have. And they all seem to be in great form. They're keen to get started again and they all did their summer homework. We're glad to have them back in the group with us.”

How's Edin Dzeko looking?

"Motivated. Edin is one of those players with a point to prove and I think he's going to be a big player for us. He only managed that in fits and starts last season but he's always gone about the task with the best of intentions and that's good to see.”

There seems to be a bit of a situation developing with Kostas Manolas. How is he?

“I think it's easy for those of you [journalists] who are here in close contact with the team to see that there's no pressure. Manolas is a good player, like many others, and it's normal that other clubs should be interested in good players. But the lad's intentions are very clear – there's no pressure there. When people start talking about pressure it creates problems even when there aren't actually any. Manolas is staying at Roma.”

Do you expect to see any new signings while you're here in the States?

"We already have a very well-equipped squad but obviously if opportunities arise we'll try to improve it. We'll probably see if we can bring in another defender but that would be above and beyond what we already have here – which is a well-rounded squad. We're fine as we are, although there's always a certain amount of unpredictability. That's part and parcel of the game.”

Will Roma be able to match Juventus?

"When you guys talk about objectives you put limits on what we can achieve but you're the ones who are limited. We want to win every game. Of course there's another team that wants to do the same thing. Napoli did superbly last season too, pushing Juventus all the way while playing some superb football. That means something and they'll be looking to win all their games too. It will be hard to finish ahead of Inter and AC Milan this season as well. It won't be easy for us to hit the ground running with the same quality of football we showed last season because we'll need to find our rhythm again. We're here to work on that every day so that we can pick up from where we left off last year.”

What do Roma need to move up to another level?

“We need to find the same strength and same team play we had at the end of last season. If we want to move up a level we need to maintain that football, that intensity and that desire to play as a team – and we're capable of doing that because we've done it before. Whether we actually manage it or not depends on how well we work now. Plus we've signed a few good players too.”

Are Juventus going to be unbeatable with Gonzalo Higuain?

"Juventus will become what they already were before: an extremely good team. In football you have to keep moving forward and be ready to change destination. For a club that means closing one door while opening another at the same time. Juventus have sold top players in the past who they then replaced. Napoli will do likewise and so will Roma, as we've sold some players. The wheels of the transfer market need to keep turning and that means there are always opportunities. Roma have never been shy about seizing those opportunities. Juventus will remain an excellent team regardless of whether or not they sell [Paul] Pogba and whether or not they sign Higuain.”

What do you think of the facilities here in Boston?

"I haven't had the chance to see the pitch for myself yet because this will be our first training session. But other members of the coaching staff and the owner himself have looked at this place and they know what we need. Unfortunately there won't be as many fans here as there were in Pinzolo but that's normal. The fans in Pinzolo did a fantastic job of showing us their support and it was a huge help for us.”

Could training be affected by the heat and humidity here?

“You need to be able to work in all sorts of conditions nowadays and it's also important for us to export the Roma brand around the world. All the top clubs try to increase their fanbase and popularity around the globe. We also have American owners so we need to bring the team to this country too.”