Roma Sign Two Captains As De Roon And Balerdi Arrive To Strengthen Serie A Push

Roma have strengthened their squad ahead of a demanding season by signing two players who have both worn the captain's armband at their previous clubs, with midfielder Marten De Roon arriving from Atalanta and defender Leonardo Balerdi joining from Marseille.

The moves bring significant experience and leadership to a Roma side preparing for both domestic and European competition. De Roon, 35, has spent a combined decade at Atalanta across two spells and eventually became the Bergamo club's captain. The Netherlands international will now reunite with Gian Piero Gasperini, who coached him during his time at Atalanta.

Gasperini said De Roon's transfer was completed within two days after the midfielder fell out of favour under current Atalanta coach Maurizio Sarri. The Roma boss revealed he contacted Atalanta owner Luca Percassi, who allowed the veteran midfielder to decide his future after his long service to the club.

“He really wanted to come to Roma,” Gasperini said. De Roon's transfer was reportedly worth around 1 million euros.

Roma have also brought in Balerdi on loan with an option to make the move permanent. The 27-year-old Argentina international has played more than 200 European matches for Borussia Dortmund and Marseille, where he also became captain. He missed this year's World Cup after suffering an injury despite being named in Argentina's initial 26-man squad.

“We've acquired two captains,” Gasperini said, adding that Balerdi is “in his prime.”

The signings come after Roma opened their Serie A campaign with a 4-0 win over Fiorentina. The club returns to the Champions League for the first time since the 2018-19 season. Meanwhile, Neil El Aynaoui is leaving for Leipzig, while Roma had earlier signed Santiago Castro from Bologna for 35 million euros.