Roma Targets Martinelli as Key Left-Sided Attacker

Roma’s transfer window has narrowed to one clear objective: give Gian Piero Gasperini the high-octane left-sided attacker his system lives off.

The new coach has made that role non-negotiable for his 2026-27 blueprint – a right-footer starting on the left, able to press, sprint, and knife inside with purpose. It’s the position that has powered his best sides, and Roma’s market strategy has been built around it.

They have already circled around some big names. Mason Greenwood, Antonio Nusa, Alejandro Garnacho: three very different profiles, one shared idea. Talks, enquiries, exploratory contacts – Roma have been busy. But no deal has crossed the finish line, and time is beginning to matter.

So the gaze has shifted to London.

Martinelli emerges from Arsenal’s shadows

According to Corriere dello Sport, sporting director Tony D’Amico has now identified Gabriel Martinelli as the most compelling alternative on the table. On paper, he is almost tailor-made for Gasperini: relentless intensity, direct running, and a natural instinct to drive infield from that left channel.

On the ground, his situation at Arsenal is starting to creak.

Martinelli, 25, is heading into the final year of his contract at The Emirates with no clear sign of a renewal. The uncertainty would be notable in any context. It becomes even more pointed after the arrival of Christos Tzolis, who has added fresh competition on the flanks under Mikel Arteta.

Tzolis’ signing has nudged Martinelli down the pecking order. From cornerstone to question mark in a matter of months. For a player of his age and profile, that is the moment when doors start to open elsewhere – and Roma are pushing to see how wide they can get this one.

D’Amico is probing the feasibility of a move, fully aware that Martinelli’s blend of aggression, pace, and penalty-box edge mirrors exactly what Gasperini wants from his left-sided forward. In tactical terms, it fits almost too well.

The problem is the price.

A Champions League price tag without the discount

Arsenal may be one year away from losing contractual control, but they are not behaving like a club ready to sell at a discount. Corriere dello Sport suggests that any serious negotiation would start around €40–45 million.

For Roma, that is a heavy number. Not impossible, but uncomfortable.

Then come the wages. Martinelli’s salary expectations would test the Giallorossi’s internal structure, already under pressure as the club tries to balance ambition with sustainability. Signing him would not just be a transfer coup; it would be a financial statement.

And they are not bidding alone.

Interest from the Turkish Super Lig has already materialised, with Galatasaray reportedly putting around £34 million on the table. That kind of offer, from the reigning Turkish champions, underlines that Martinelli’s market value has not collapsed with his recent dip in goals. His profile still commands serious money.

Roma know this. They also know they cannot afford to get dragged into an auction they cannot win.

Plan B: Mora, the younger bet

So the club is working on parallel tracks.

While the Martinelli operation remains alive but complicated, Roma are advancing conversations around a different kind of solution: Rodrigo Mora of Porto. Over the weekend, reports suggested the Giallorossi are prepared to buy the young winger outright from the Portuguese club.

Mora offers a different equation. Younger, potentially more affordable, but still aligned with the technical and tactical demands laid out by Gasperini. High energy, direct, and suited to that same left-sided corridor of chaos the coach wants to weaponise.

He would not arrive with Martinelli’s Premier League pedigree or immediate star power. What he might bring is flexibility – on the pitch and on the balance sheet.

That, for Roma, has real value.

A battle between idea and reality

This is where Roma stand: a coach with a very specific tactical need, a director chasing a near-perfect fit in Martinelli, and a market that refuses to make it easy.

Gasperini’s system has always rewarded clubs willing to back his ideas with the right profiles, even at significant cost. The question now is whether Roma will stretch far enough to test Arsenal’s resolve for Martinelli, or pivot decisively toward a prospect like Mora and trust Gasperini to mould him.

The clock is ticking, the left flank is still missing its main weapon, and the next move from Trigoria will say a lot about how bold this new Roma era truly intends to be.