Edin Dzeko will refuse to play in Roma’s remaining preseason friendlies as he looks to force through a move to Inter, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
The Bosnian striker is fed up with the Giallorossi’s obstructionist tactics in negotiations, which has seen them repeatedly raise their asking price as they struggle to find a replacement on the market.
Dzeko has continued to train professionally for Roma in the meantime, but now he wants respect and is considering missing the upcoming matches with Athletic Bilbao (today), Perugia and Real Madrid.
“He wants a new challenge in his career and considers his time in Rome to be over,” Gazzetta reported this morning.
“Dzeko so far has conducted himself in an exemplary manner, working hard in training and never raising his voice, and perhaps this approach gave Roma false hope of him changing his mind.
“The club again reiterated last weekend how much they believe in him, asking him to stay for another season without signing a new deal and then leave on a free transfer.
“Despite the best attempts of Paulo Fonseca and his teammates, though, Dzeko has never changed his mind. He wants to be part of Inter’s new project.”
Corriere dello Sport described Dzeko’s current mood as ‘annoyed, surly and stubborn’, before revealing a telling comment he made after Roma’s last preseason win against Lille.
They reported: “When people praised him for his performance in that match, Dzeko responded by saying: ‘I’m training for myself and for Inter’.”
Dzeko was annoyed with comments made about him by Gianluca Petrachi last month, when he was unveiled as Roma’s new sporting director.
The forward was advised not to reply in public, but now he has had enough and will do whatever it takes to secure his move to Inter.
His decision to put his foot down could change things very quickly and it remains to be seen how Roma choose to deal with this problem.
