Roma set sights on City raid

Roma have reportedly intensified their pursuit of Manchester City striker Stevan Jovetic.

Italian source La Gazzetta dello Sport claims the Serie A heavyweights have identified the Montenegro international as the man to replace Mattia Destro, who is the subject of strong interest from Tottenham Hotspur.

They are now believed to have jumped ahead of rivals Juventus in the queue to land the Blues hitman, although they are likely to be met by fierce resistance from the Premier League champions during the summer transfer window.

While the ex-Fiorentina man was plagued by injuries last term, he has managed to avoid fitness problems in a successful and goal-laden pre-season and he enters the new campaign with fresh enthusiasm.

Roma’s strong interest, and City’s reluctance to part company with the player, will be bad news for Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri, who saw him as a priority purchase.

Allegri was swiftly appointed as the new man in charge less than 24 hours after the sudden and unexpected departure of head coach Antonio Conte last month.

The 44-year-old, who guided the Turin giants to three successive domestic titles, quit one day after the start of pre-season training and just hours after holding urgent transfer talks with the hierarchy.