Just when it seemed we wouldn’t have to spend our Sunday dredging up ghosts of past transfers, the Italian media has breathed new life into the seemingly moribund Rodrigo Mora saga. The 19-year-old Porto midfielder popped up on Roma’s radar earlier this month, whipping fans into a frenzy with visions of a Portuguese Messi dancing through our heads.
Although prohibitively expensive by Roma’s customary standards, the Giallorossi were poised to smash their transfer record, handing over €50 million to acquire the talented teenager, albeit in a convoluted fashion. Unwilling or unable to pay the full freight for Mora, Sporting Director Tony D’Amico spent the better part of a week blazing creative paths toward the fifty-million mark.
With the two sides reportedly agreeing to a 50/50 split that would see Roma pay €25 million this summer and €25 million next summer—the latter essentially serving to remove the rumored 40% to 50% sell-on fee—it seemed the deal was as good as done. There were also reports that the deal was structured as a loan with an obligation to buy—either way, the final cost would be in the €50 million neighborhood.
But then Porto President André Villas-Boas began moving the goalposts, demanding easier benchmarks to make the deal permanent. With the negotiations halted, Mora and his representatives voiced their displeasure, reportedly attempting to persuade the Porto brass to accept the Roma deal.
To date, Villas-Boas and Porto haven’t budged, but there may be hope on the horizon. According to nearly any Italian transfer journalist or agent mouthpiece you can think of, the deal is back on. In fact, Gianluca Di Marzio contends that the deal is making progress and that the two clubs are close to a €25 million transfer with a 50% sell-on clause.
For the skeptics among us, this is nothing new (literally)—we read these exact same stories two weeks ago. Still, it’s good to see that Roma hasn’t given up yet. He may not be an actual left winger, but Mora will add some much-needed pace, trickery, and excitement to Gian Piero Gasperini’s attack.