Christopher Nkunku on Transfer List: Roma Eyes Bold Swap with Soule
Ruben Amorim has dropped a bombshell at Milan: Christopher Nkunku is on the transfer list.
With less than two weeks left before the summer window slams shut, the Portuguese coach has delivered his updated list of expendable players to the club’s hierarchy. Nkunku’s name is on it. A few weeks ago that would have sounded unthinkable.
Back at the start of pre-season, the 28-year-old Frenchman was one of the early fascinations at Milanello. Amorim tested him, tried to mould him, flirted with the idea of building a chunk of his attack around the former Chelsea forward. That spark has gone. Nkunku is now training on the fringes of the first team, a high-profile asset suddenly pushed to the margins.
The moment his situation shifted, the rest of Serie A took notice. Roma moved quickest.
Roma circle again for long-time target
Per Calcio Mercato, Nkunku’s unexpected availability has immediately reignited interest in the capital. Roma have been tracking him for months, almost obsessively. This is not a new name on Gian Piero Gasperini’s whiteboard.
In January, during the previous transfer window, Gasperini identified Nkunku as the perfect tactical piece for his puzzle. Left side of the attack, creative, mobile, able to drift inside and combine — the Frenchman ticked every box. Roma pushed. Gasperini pushed harder.
They hit a wall.
Nkunku didn’t want to move mid-season, and Milan’s hierarchy closed ranks around him. The Rossoneri considered him too important, too valuable to lose in the middle of the campaign. Any proposal from Roma was quickly dismissed.
That stance has now flipped. Roma’s admiration has not.
Soule on the table in a bold swap idea
Roma’s transfer plan has taken a twist in recent days. Difficulties in their pursuit of Rodrigo Mora have forced sporting director Tony D’Amico to change course. The response has been aggressive: go back for Nkunku, this time with a stronger hand.
According to Asromalive, talks are shaping into one of the more intriguing deals of the Italian summer. The key? Matías Soulé.
The talented Argentine attacker could be included as a direct makeweight in negotiations, forming the basis of a straight swap between the two clubs. No half-measures, no minor add-ons as the headline — just one big name for another.
For Milan, Soule is not a throw-in. He has been a prominent target on their recruitment list as they look to refresh the attacking midfield department. His profile fits the Rossoneri’s ideas: technical, inventive, capable of operating between the lines and drifting into wide pockets. From their point of view, using Nkunku to unlock Soule would be a clean tactical trade.
For Roma, the logic is just as clear. They would finally land Gasperini’s long-coveted left-sided attacker and reshape the front line around him. One move, two problems solved for two heavyweights.
On paper, it looks almost too neat.
Fees aligned, wages don’t
The numbers, at least in terms of transfer fees, are not the problem. Both Milan and Roma value their players at roughly the same figure, in the €35m–€40m range. That alignment removes one of the usual pressure points in Italian deals of this scale.
The real tension sits in the wage packets.
Nkunku’s salary is significantly higher than Soule’s. Reports indicate the Argentine currently earns just over half of what the Frenchman takes home. That gap creates a financial fault line the clubs must bridge if a swap is to hold.
Roma would have to decide whether they can absorb Nkunku’s lucrative deal or find a way to stretch it over bonuses and longer terms. Milan, on the other side, would be taking on a more manageable wage with Soule, but will still push to protect their own internal salary structure.
With the deadline racing closer, time is not on anyone’s side. The structure of the financial package — wages, bonuses, potential clauses — will decide whether this idea becomes one of the defining trades of the window or just another Italian summer story that never quite materialises.
Two clubs, two attackers, one window running out of days. Who blinks first?
