We have already talked about Dan Friedkin's revolutionary choice to bet on Jose Mourinho as the new coach, but since that day the rumours about Roma's transfer market have been coming out at a frantic pace, one after the other and day after day.

From Cristiano Ronaldo to Nemanja Matic, passing through Eric Bailly and Isco: there is no former Mourinho player who has not been linked to AS Roma, but the same goes for the players of Jorge Mendes' agency, from Vinicius Jr to Raul Jimenez, passing through Ruben Neves and Renato Sanches.

Fans are rightly dreaming, it is a natural thing when the team you support appoints Mourinho as head coach, while journalists are attracted by suggestions and imaginative reconstructions. One thing you to need to know: since Mourinho's announcement on May 4th, over 70 different players have been linked to Roma!

It is still unclear which players Roma will buy, but the general manager Tiago Pinto is working side by side with the Special One to build a stronger team, able to compete for the highest positions in the standings.

Mourinho is not a coach who can be easily satisfied, just as he is not a coach who accepts making a bad impression or to fail. The players who have been linked to Roma up to now all belong to the same category: strong players, often already coached by Mourinho or coming from big teams, but above all players with great personality and charisma.

Roma had many problems in defence (due to the work of Paulo Fonseca, more than anything else), the absence of a high level midfielder weighed heavily and above all they did not receive a great contribution from Edin Dzeko, the most important player in the squad (and also the highest paid). Roma's priority in the transfer market is to find charisma. Mourinho and Pinto want to build a squad made up of as many players with personality and charisma as possible.

Mural of Mourinho in Rome - fans are getting excited!

GOALKEEPER

As for the roles, however, from our point of view the priorities should be that of a great goalkeeper, a leader in that area of the pitch (an actual hole in Roma squad…) to lead the defensive line.

Not surprisingly, one of Mourinho's first requests was to buy a strong goalkeeper, possibly experienced. Many names have already been made for that position, from Sommer to Musso, without forgetting Rui Patricio, Gigio Donnarumma and Szczesny.

Here, in recent days the hottest names seem to be that of the Wolverhampton goalkeeper and that of the former Arsenal goalkeeper, who already played for Roma a few years ago. Szczesny is two years younger, he already knows the Italian language, he also knows Rome, but the ideal reinforcement could be Rui Patricio, a 33-year-old goalkeeper, starter for Portugal and with great experience, as he boasts 584 club games in his career.

Portuguese like Mourinho, Rui Patricio is an extremely reliable goalkeeper, has great leadership and a very strong character. Szczesny could return to Rome to finally win that trophy he missed in the previous experience. Obviously the dream is Gigio Donnarumma, but realistically speaking, for the costs and due to the ambitions of the player, it is an almost impossible name (despite Mourinho actually calling him).

DEFENCE

Obviously, many names have already been made for the defence, the first of which was that of Jerome Boateng, who left Bayern Munich as a free agent. The experienced and strong German defender has been linked to several teams, from Fenerbahçe to Monaco, passing through Mourinho's Roma. Physically dominant, a true leader.

Roma in defence already have a lot of players: Mancini (25 years old), Smalling, Ibanez (22 years old) and Kumbulla (21 years old). It is true that there has been some friction between the Portuguese coach and the English defender in the past, but without a transfer of one of these players (Mancini is unlikely to be sacrificed) it will be very difficult to see a new defender in Rome.

A man of experience (they are all young) and with great personality also for that position, however, would be an absolutely logical and understandable request. The starting full-backs should be Karsdorp and Spinazzola, but it is possible that Mourinho will ask Pinto to buy a full-back capable of playing both left and right, possibly an experienced player.

Boateng is looking for a new club after leaving Bayern

MIDFIELD

Even in midfield the list of players under contract is endless, but it is in this role that will arrive one of the great signings (or maybe two…it will depend on the departures).

Roma's defensive midfielders are Cristante, Diawara, Villar (23 years old) and Darboe (19 years old). Without going into specifics, also because it would probably be rather useless, it is the role in which Roma need to improve most. Villar is a central midfielder of great quality, Mourinho will certainly be able to work with him, but he is not a defensive midfielder.

It is no coincidence that Roma have talked with AZ for Koopemeiners and with Arsenal for Xhaka. They are both midfielders, both with great technical qualities, but the Swiss midfielder is the closest to wearing the Giallorossi shirt next season.

Both are in Tiago Pinto's notebook, but Granit has more experience, a rare personality and mentality. Moreover, he was publicly praised by Mourinho for his qualities, some time ago. To a strong character, we must add a feature that goes perfectly with the football of Mourinho, master of attacking transitions: he is gifted with an elite long pass.

One of Roma's real priorities will therefore necessarily be a defensive midfielder, physically strong, a player able to set the rhythm of the team and quickly become a leader of the group, which too often broke up in the decisive moments of the big match. (Roma fans will hardly forget the second half at Old Trafford, in which Fonseca's team conceded 5 goals…).

In the event that the transfers in midfield were to be two, then the doors would open for another arrive in that role. On a numerical level, the players are there, but no one would be surprised if Mourinho decided to take on two midfielders. Xhaka, however, is just the perfect example of everything that Roma has lacked in recent years: good at defending, he knows how to take free-kicks, gifted with great technique, a charismatic leader.

Xhaka has recently expressed admiration for Mourinho

ATTACK

The central striker is the other great situation to be resolved for Roma. Mourinho currently has Edin Dzeko (former Roma captain, Fonseca removed his armband after an argument) and Borja Mayoral.

If the Spanish forward has been the protagonist of an excellent season, with 17 goals scored and 7 assists, which is why he should remain on loan for another year, the situation of the Bosnian striker is quite complicated. Dzeko is 35 years old, Mourinho would be the first top manager he could work with in Rome, but his salary is very expensive and the club has every intention of buying another striker, given that during the last season of Serie A, Dzeko managed to score only 7 goals.

Numbers that absolutely do not justify the salary earned by Dzeko, but that with a new coach, one of the best in the world, his stats could improve considerably. Moving from Fonseca to Mourinho can only make him want to stay in a city he loves and finally try to win a trophy in Rome.

The name of Andrea Belotti, striker of Torino and Roberto Mancini's Italy, is circulating a lot and he could be bought for a figure of around 20 million euros, but the ideal for board could be the arrival of a young forward, who could be left to grow under Dzeko's mentoring.

A striker to bet on could be Mauro Icardi, who is struggling to impose himself at PSG: he could easily score a lot of goals under working with Mourinho. What is certain is that starting the season with three strong forwards would be the best choice to compete right away.

Belotti could lead the line for Italy at Euro 2020

As for the wings and the attacking midfielders, however, the situation is quite clear, with the three starters who will be Nicolò Zaniolo (who has finally recovered from his knee injury and will be a great "signing" for Mou), Lorenzo Pellegrini and Henrik Mkhitaryan, with El Shaarawy and Pedro as alternatives.

Mourinho could ask for another attacking player, but first he will want to watch the team closely, which undeniably under the leadership of Fonseca has failed to express its full potential (and this is a great understatement).

The top priorities of Roma should be four: a reliable goalkeeper, a strong centre-back, a charismatic defensive midfielder and a clinical striker. Dan Friedkin has decided to go big (cutting with the past called James Pallotta) and to appoint a top manager. The fans can finally dream and now expect great arrivals from the market, above all they expect a great team to be built to go and fight for the top of the standings and, who knows, maybe return to raise a trophy to the sky of Rome.