Roma were close to signing Barella and Sanchez: the details
Sanchez had fallen out of favor at Man United after having endured a frustrating spell at the club. Barella, on the other hand, had become one of the best young players in Italy and had been linked with many clubs in Italy and in Europe.
Our correspondent Francesco Balzani believes that Roma were really close to signing both of them before Inter managed to scupper their deals for the midfielder and the Chilean star.
Gianluca Petrachi was so close to Barella that Luca Pellegrini's move was already settled as a partial counterpart to the deal. The full-back, who then arrived in Sardinia on loan from Juve, had been assessed at 18 million.
Gregoire Defrel would have also been a part of the deal and Roma would have offered around 22-25 million euros. But Barella only wanted to join Inter.
When it comes to Sanchez, United had offered the forward to the giallorossi. It was supposed to be a loan deal with United paying half the wages. It was close to being done before Inter jumped in and sealed the deal.