Frederic Massara Faces Uncertain Future Amid Roma Shake-Up

“Massara is a great person, but on a technical level, we haven’t managed to create a bond, a connection,” he admits. “But it’s always been about the team; there’s never been anything personal. It’s always been about my style of play, which may be a little different than what you might think. But always about professional requests, never personal ones. **Will he leave? The club decides, not me**

“I didn’t know some players, I always said that if he had seen them and liked them, then sign them. That’s your job, and if you know what you’re looking for, do it. You know, July, I’ve always looked for certain characteristics. From day one, I said we should strengthen our attacking lineup because the team was strong. It didn’t seem like such an extraordinary request, but rather a common one for a new coach with a different way of playing. As for the rest, I never vetoed them or anything else. I never denied anyone their job. I always tried to push forward, I always believed the team had good value, and that was the crux of my request. Is it something so difficult to understand that it caused this situation? Sancho? The owners rightly decided not to go through with that deal.” It’s the bolded part of that quotation (emphasis added) that has fueled rumors of Massara’s dismissal. While Massara hasn’t provided any indication he’s leaving his post, sources in Italy claim that Roma is already compiling a list of replacements, headlined by Cristian Giuntoli, formerly of Napoli and Juventus. *La Repubblica* adds Atalanta’s Tony D’Amico, Verona’s Sean Sogliano and Napoli’s Giovanni Manna to the list. If this is truly Gasperini’s show now, Roma should give him considerable say in Massara’s future and possible replacement. They’re all in now, so there’s no point in hedging their bets.