French tactician expected to lose Lamela next week.
Roma coach Rudi Garcia hasn’t decided if Erik Lamela will play for the club on Sunday, but revealed he trusts the management’s judgement on transfers.
The 21-year-old Argentinian is believed to be on the verge of sealing a €35m move to Tottenham, with the switch likely to be confirmed early next week.
Nevertheless, that hasn’t stopped Garcia from naming him in his 22-man squad for their Serie A opener against Livorno on Sunday, but he didn’t reveal whether or not he would play the youngster.
“I won’t change what I said pre-season, which is that I wanted all the players in the squad to remain, but this is not the day to talk about the transfer market,” he said at his pre-game press conference as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“There are two aspects to be considered: sporting and financial. At times the financial aspect comes first. We are working along with the directors and I trust they will give me a competitive squad,” he added.
However, while Garcia openly discussed the situation over his trust in the club despite the impending sale of Lamela, he gave no clues as to whether or not the promising talent would start in his first game in charge.
“As always, I only give the line-up to my players two hours before the game. Erik is in the squad, exactly like the other 22 players.”
“I have faith in my club because this will be a strong Roma, which is important for the fans and for all of us. I trust the club will give me options, so if someone leaves he’ll be replaced by someone of the same level,” he concluded.
It remains to be seen when Lamela completes his move to White Hart Lane, but the Giallorossi faithful will be eager to see some new arrivals given that they have already lost both Marquinhos and Pablo Osvaldo this summer.
In contrast, the likes of Mehdi Benatia and Kevin Strootman have arrived, but Garcia knows that he will need to pick up early results in order to silence the critics and an unhappy group of supporters.
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