Roma Expected to Make New Bid to Sign Chris Smalling 'Soon'

Manchester United are expecting a new offer from AS Roma for centre-back Chris Smalling 'soon' as the Italian outfit look to secure his services on a permanent basis.

Smalling enjoyed a very successful 2019/20 season on loan with Roma, but he has since departed the club after they failed to reach an agreement with United over a permanent deal. The Englishman isn't considered part of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's plans and is free to leave Old Trafford this summer as long as the club's valuation is met.

Smalling impressed on loan at Roma / Soccrates Images/Getty Images

Man Utd are said to be holding out for between £17-23m for his services. Roma have indeed made a number of moves to sign Smalling on a permanent basis, but they have proven unwilling to meet United's demands thus far. As a result, clubs such as Inter have recognised the situation and have begun to show an interest in the defender.

However, Fabrizio Romano now reports that the Red Devils are expecting Roma to make a new offer for the 30-year-old soon, although he doesn't specify the amount of the proposal. It is also noted that United are looking to bring in a new centre-back this summer.

Solskjaer's desire to bring in a new central defender this summer has been made clear in recent months. With Smalling, Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo all expected to leave the club in the coming weeks, the Premier League outfit are in need of reinforcements.

United are on the verge of completing a deal to sign Donny van de Beek from Ajax, and after that, it has been said they will turn their attention to finding a new centre-back. While a number of names have been mentioned, it is now RB Leipzig's Dayot Upamecano who is top of Solskjaer's wish list in this department.

The Red Devils are also still keen to bring in their main summer target Jadon Sancho this summer, while the club are also looking at Bayern Munich's Thiago. It remains to be seen what deals United can get done before the transfer window slams shut, but Solskjaer will be keen to offload players such as Smalling in order to raise funds.