In a story that surprised more than one during the January transfer window, Brighton allegedly tried to make a move for AS Roma’s Maxime Gonalons.
The defensive midfielder, who had only arrived in Italy in the summer from Lyon, had struggled a bit with injuries during the first half of the season, and his lack of game time appeared to be an excuse for the Seagulls to try something.
However, Chris Hughton and co. were turned away, as the 28-year-old had no intention of leaving his new club so soon after signing a four-year deal, and that isn’t going to change in the summer.
Speaking to Calciomercato, the player’s agent said: “He’s still a part of their project and Di Francesco is counting on him a lot. Will he stay next year? Of course! We haven’t received any negative signal from the team and that’s why he’s got every intention of wearing this shirt for a long time”.
Of course, that could change if the AS Roma manager ended up, after some poor recent performances, getting sacked, but that doesn’t appear to be on the cards at this moment in time.
If things don’t turn around, however, and his replacement isn’t all that keen on the seven times capped France international, perhaps Brighton might have a chance.
We’re not there yet, though.
