Roma Weighing Winter Move for Madrid Forward Endrick

We're still some 96 hours away from Claudio Ranieri's re-re-re-debut as Roma manager. While we don't know who the Tinkerman will select to start against Napoli on Sunday, the transfer rumor mill is already buzzing over possible winter additions. Apart from goalkeeper, the Giallorossi could use reinforcements at nearly every position, especially in attack, where Ranieri's greater emphasis on forward play demands more depth across the frontline.

Accordingly, Spanish outlet Sport has suggested a cross-capital transfer that would see Brazilian sensation Endrick trade the comforts of Real Madrid and Santiago Bernabeu for the chaos and calamity of AS Roma and the Stadio Olimpico. Endrick, 18, arrived in Madrid on a €47.5 million move from Palmeiras last July but has found playing time hard to come by since then, logging only 129 minutes in all competitions—though he has scored two goals in that limited time.

While Madrid isn't ready to give up on their investment, Sport suggests they are willing to send Endrick on loan this winter, with clubs like Southampton and Real Valladolid joining Roma in the queue for the talented teenager. With so much at stake for Roma in the coming weeks and months, it's fair to question how much an 18-year-old could really help and/or be trusted, but there's no denying this kid's talent.

And who knows, maybe the 73-year-old manager would give an outsized role to a relatively unproven teenager. After all, it's not like Roma's current team-building approach has worked.

I suspect we'll see the rumor mill's pace pick up as we weave our way into December, but if Roma can catch lightning in a bottle for six months with Endrick, perhaps he's exactly the shot in the arm they need.