by Anton Johan
With just over two and a half weeks before the
2010-11 Serie A season kicks off in Italy, various clubs are still concluding deals for players, including AS Roma, which has taken Argentinean defender Guillermo Burdisso on loan.
Even though Roma has been eager to sign Burdisso's more famous brother Nicolas, as soon as it became apparent that a deal with the talented defender would not go ahead, the Serie a club wasted no time in snatching up his younger brother.
Also a defender, 22-year-old Guillermo has been 'loaned' to Roma by Argentinean side Rosario Central for the season. And if he proves himself at Roma this year, AS Roma has the option to buy out his contract for a sizable 4.7 million euros.
Meanwhile, despite weeks of speculation about highly talented, but controversial teen sensation Mario Balotelli, the youngster has still has not finalised his move from current Serie A champions Inter Milan, to top English club Manchester City.
And it's hard to weed out the rumours from the facts. For instance, some say the reason Balotelli's deal has not been finalised is because his agent is struggling to get Manchester City to agree to the £25 million contact for the 19-year-old forward.
Others say that Inter Milan president is the cog in the deal because he will not let Balotelli go for less than £30 million. And according to reports, Inter's interest in acquiring Javier Mascherano from Liverpool is dependent on the Balotelli deal.
We can only wait and see what happens. In another story concerning both AS Roma and Inter Milan, reports are circulating that one of Roma's newest players, Brazilian striker Adriano, is on a diet to shed some pounds ahead of the big showdown.
The showdown in question is the highly anticipated Super Coppa match between Roma and Inter Milan on Saturday, August 21 at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in Milan. In the past, Adriano's career has been dotted with drink and depression issues.
