Roma will trigger their buy-back option on Real Betis striker Antonio Sanabria and sell him on to Atletico Madrid, reports Calciomercato, via AS.
Sanabria left Roma to join Betis on a permanent deal in 2016 but the Serie A giants included a buy-back option in the transfer worth €11m (£9.7m), which rises to €14m (£12.8m) next season.
The 21-year-old endured an injury-hit debut campaign for Betis last season but has now put those problems behind him to make a stunning start to the season for Quique Setien’s side.
Diego Simeone is a big fan of the Paraguay international and has reportedly set his sights on the striker as he looked to revitalise Atletico’s offensive options.
Atletico have struggled for goals this season but hope Diego Costa’s January return will spark them into life.
Costa’s return will be met by Fernando Torres’ departure and there could be further turnover given Kevin Gameiro’s underwhelming stint at the club.
Despite Sanabria’s fine form, Roma have no intention of keeping the starlet and will instead look to sell him straight to Atletico for a profit.
Sanabria has already scored more goals in 10 La Liga appearances this season (7) than he managed in 22 appearances last term (4) for Betis.
In fact, only Lionel Messi (12), Simone Zaza (9) and Cedric Bakambu (8) have scored more La Liga goals than Sanabria this season.
