The winter transfer window is a time for clubs to strengthen their squads and add extra impetus to their seasons.
Roma have utilised it well in the past to sign the likes of Hidetoshi Nakata, Radja Nainggolan and Vincent Candela. But not every mid-season arrival has the desired effect.
Every club has their share of transfer regrets and Roma are no different. It can be tough to find the right deal while the season is ongoing, so some signings struggle to meet the required standards.
Even if some were not necessarily bad players, here are the eight Roma players to have arrived in winter transfer windows but left without even making 10 appearances.
Bryan Reynolds (8)
Embed from Getty ImagesOne of the first signings of the Friedkin era at Roma was Texan full-back Bryan Reynolds, who arrived at the club on 1st February 2021.
Roma beat off reported competition from the likes of Juventus for his signature. However, it soon became clear he wa off the pace.
The right-sided defender only made eight appearances, half of which were starts, before Roma loaned him to KV Kortrijk just under 12 months after his arrival. The only time he managed 90 minutes was in the 6-1 loss to Bodo/Glimt in the 2021-22 Europa Conference League, which perhaps speaks volumes.
Massimo Marrazina (7)
Midway through the 2002-03 season, Roma allowed Scudetto hero Gabriel Batistuta to leave after a decline in form. Filling the gap in the squad was another striker who arrived that month, Massimo Marrazina, who had spent the bulk of his early career in Serie B before two-and-a-half seasons in the top flight ahead of his Roma move.
“I’m an ambitious person and I hope to do everything possible to convince Roma and their supporters,” Marrazina said at his unveiling. “I have a big enthusiasm and a big will, but undoubtedly my performances on the pitch will judge me.”
But he couldn’t deal with the step up and failed to score from his seven Serie A matches in the Giallorossi colours.
Souleymane Diamoutene (6)
Joining on loan from Lecce in 2009, Souleymane Diamoutene had been playing in Serie B the year before and Serie A for the first half of that season.
Roma gave him another quick step up, elevating him to Champions League level. The defender played in both legs of the Round of 16 tie with Arsenal that season (the first as a sub and second as a starter).
They were the only ever Champions League appearances he would make in his career, and he only played four times in the league for Roma before his loan ended.
Clement Grenier (6)
Embed from Getty ImagesAfter losing his way with Lyon, in part due to injuries, Clement Grenier opted for a new challenge with Roma in 2017.
It was the first time he had left Lyon, doing so on a loan deal. Roma had the option to buy him, but after he only made one start among six appearances, it was an easy decision not to (even though he contributed an assist in that start).
There was a hint of what might have been for a once-promising player, but it just wasn’t to be for the former France international.
Rafael Toloi (5)
Unlike many of the names on this list, Roma can look back at their time with Rafael Toloi with some regrets.
They brought him to European football from Brazilian outfit Sao Paulo on a loan deal in 2015, before giving him just five run-outs in Serie A.
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Toloi was not signed permanently at the season’s end, with the decision instead taken by Atalanta. They have moulded him into one of the league’s most reliable defenders – and a naturalised Italy international – in the years since.
Abel Xavier (4)
In his 30s at the time, Abel Xavier was a free agent at the start of the 2004-05 season, which was a dreaded one for Roma.
He signed up for the Giallorossi midway through it, by which time they were already on their third of four coaches that season.
Xavier stayed on a short-term deal, making three appearances in Serie A (the first coming in Luigi Delneri’s final game in charge, in March) and one in the Coppa Italia before being released and joining Middlesbrough.
Jonathan Silva (2)
One of Monchi’s most questionable signings during his disastrous Roma tenure, Jonathan Silva was the replacement for Emerson Palmieri after his mid-season sale to Chelsea in 2018.
Emerson had lost his place as a starter during his recovery period from injury, so it was strange that Roma opted for another player with physical problems to take his place.
Silva played the same number of games as Emerson did for Roma that season, just two, as Aleksandar Kolarov remained the starter. Even if the Portuguese player had been fit, there likely wouldn’t have been any difference.
Nicolas Spolli (1)
Walter Sabatini oversaw many positive signings for Roma as their sporting director, but the winter window of the 2014-15 season always raised eyebrows.
In addition to ineffective forwards Seydou Doumbia and Victor Ibarbo, defender Nicolas Spolli was one of three signings brought in mid-season that year.
Arriving in February 2015, the Argentine would have to wait until the final game of the season nearly four months later for his only Roma appearance, although he did last all 90 minutes in a loss to Palermo.
Understandably, Roma did not buy out his loan from then-Serie B side Catania, bringing an end to one of the most forgettable Giallorossi careers.
Keep visiting this blog throughout January for regular updates on Roma transfer news.
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