Francesco Totti has warned Roma they must buy at least two more star players to hope of competing for the top three places.

“John Arne Riise and Simone Loria are two excellent reinforcements, but now I expect another two signings of great quality,” he told the Gazzetta dello Sport.

“If we want to compete with Inter, Milan and Juventus, we need at least two more important players. At the moment, we are the fourth strongest side in Serie A.”

While those two have been brought in from Liverpool and Siena respectively, Roma have also sold Amantino Mancini, Ludovic Giuly and Matteo Ferrari.

It is particularly galling to lose Mancini to rivals Inter just a year after Cristian Chivu made the same journey.

“Inter are trying to strengthen their side by weakening ours. They have the capabilities to cherry-pick from other clubs, while it is more difficult for us.”

Transfer gossip has them very close to capturing Brazilian hitman Julio Baptista from Real Madrid, although there are also rumours that Jose Antonio Reyes is on his way from Atletico Madrid.

“I like Baptista and hope he does come to Roma, but we need another reinforcement after that.”

The transfer market could make a sharp turn for the Giallorossi after it was announced this morning that Italpetroli – the Sensi family’s company that owns Roma – have agreed to extend the terms of their loan with UniCredit.

This means more cash is freed up in the short-term to spend on new players.

“We will try to repeat our past success and aim for something more important than the Coppa Italia,” said the captain.

“The fact the Champions League Final will be played in Rome is an event that for my generation won’t return again. It is our objective, even more so than the Scudetto.”

The last time this match was hosted by the Italian capital was in 1984, when Liverpool and Bruce Grobbelaar’s ‘spaghetti legs’ saw off the Giallorossi in a shoot-out.

“I was eight years old. I watched it on television with my whole family. I remember Roberto Pruzzo’s goal and the silence during the penalties. Rome was mute.”

Ref From channel4.com

According to the Gazzetta dello Sport, Juventus would like to sell midfield flop Tiago Mendes to Monaco, however the player is holding out for a move to Atletico Madrid.

Tiago only signed for Juve last summer for €13m, however he has been a huge disappointment in Turin, making just 10 Serie A starts, and scoring no goals.

The Bianconeri tried to sell the 27-year-old during the January transfer window, and even set-up a deal with Tottenham Hotspur, however the player rejected the move at the last minute.

The Portuguese midfielder was holding out for a move to Atletico Madrid, but they were not willing to meet Juve’s asking price and so Tiago struggled on at the Stadio Olimpico until then end of the season.

The former Chelsea man has been with the Old Lady in their summer training camp at Pinzolo and even played in the friendly against Piacenza earlier this week.

However, it is no secret that Juve are desperate to offload Tiago, and they are said to be in negotiations with Monaco, the French club said to be willing to pay around €7.5m.

Tiago though has no intention of signing for the Monte Carlo-based outfit, and is still holding out for a dream move to Atletico Madrid, hoping that eventually Juve will lower their asking price to satisfy the Spaniards.

Ref From Gianni Wilson - goal.com