Roma sporting director Monchi insists the impending exit of Alisson does not demonstrate a lack of ambition as the goalkeeper closes in on a world-record move to Liverpool.
The Premier League club have long been linked with the Brazil international and a deal – rumoured to be for £67million – is nearing completion.
Alisson enjoyed an impressive 2017-18 season with Roma after taking over as first choice from the departed Wojciech Szczesny, and his arrival at Anfield could finally solve a problem position for manager Jurgen Klopp.
Monchi confirmed the player has travelled to Liverpool after the Serie A side decided to accept a “very substantial bid” for the 25-year-old.
“When a very substantial bid comes in, you have to consider it. We thought about the pros and cons and decided to talk to Liverpool about the deal.”
Alisson’s switch to England, where he will join up again with former Roma team-mate Mohamed Salah, comes after Radja Nainggolan was allowed to join domestic rivals Inter in June.
However, while understanding the frustration from fans at another major departure, Monchi has rejected the suggestion Roma have become a selling club.
The Spaniard has made additions ahead of the 2018-19 campaign, with winger Kluivert and midfielder Javier Pastore – signed from Paris Saint-Germain – among the new faces at the Stadio Olimpico.
“Selling Alisson would not show a lack of ambition. For me, ambition is about doing the right thing after thinking everything through,” Monchi said.
“I came here to build a strong team, not just for one year but for many years to come – and I’m 100 per cent sure that will be the case.
“I understand the fans’ view. I want them to know we’re working to build a stronger team.
“Some people never thought we’d be able to sign Kluivert. The same goes for Pastore. Perhaps today is tough for some fans, but we’ve brought in top players.”
Monchi,also defended the sale of Mohamed Salah to Liverpool , last season insisting the Italian club had no option because of financial fair play pressures.
Monchi, who oversaw the transfer shortly after his arrival from Sevilla, insists the need to comply with Uefa’s financial rules gave the club no alternative. “I sold him for more than €42m,” the sporting director told the Spanish radio station Onda Cero. “We had a need to sell. We had no option but to sell Salah before 30 June. Had we not done that, we probably wouldn’t be here playing the semi-final of the Champions League as we had Uefa closely monitoring us.
“We didn’t want to sell him but we had no choice. We had to take an offer before the end of the month. He wanted to leave, but we would have kept him if the regulations weren’t against us. When I arrived, the offer [from Liverpool] was €30m but we managed to get it up to almost €50m with bonuses. That is what we could do. The market then went crazy with Neymar, Coutinho and Dembélé.”
Alisson, 25, has been at Roma for two years, and played 37 Serie A games last season, after starting his career at Brazilian side Internacional.
Roma’s high profile signings this summer include midfielder Javier Pastore from Paris St-Germain for £21.8m and winger Justin Kluivert from Ajax for £15.16m. Belgium midfielder Radja Nainggolan was sold to Serie A rivals Inter Milan.
The Romans made it to the UEFA Champions League semi finals last season.