Fiorentina send in the lawyers, as Roma close in on €25m-rated Salah

There are many facets to the this whole Mohamed Salah summer blockbuster of IMAX proportions.  There are the parts that are crazy, the parts that are ridiculously crazy, and the parts that are beyond ridiculously crazy.  Like the layers of a very crazy onion, you can peel this one as long as you can bear it.

Let's start with the crazy, which is the base level of things happening around the 23-year-old winger.  The Chelsea castoff is just about the most wanted footballer in Italy.  Florence and Milan have basically gone to war over him, ending half a millennium of relative peace forged with the Italian Wars of the 1400s.  Meanwhile, the youngster's price has risen to well over what Chelsea paid 18 months ago, with Roma rumored to be offering around €25m for his services.  That's almost a Pedro (not counting wages)!  I may not be the biggest fan of the Barcelona man, but I'd take him over Salah any day of the week, and twice on Sunday.

But of course it's hardly that simple.  Salah's decision-making process may be questionable, but La Viola are continuing with the ridiculously crazy demands and behaviours as well.  This part of the drama seems to have taken a rather personal turn over the last day or so, with Salah's agent Ramy Abbas flaunting the fact that Salah will play in Italy next season despite all of Fiorentina's complaining.  Unsurprisingly, Fiorentina did not take kindly to this provocation.

"We are saddened, he is a nice guy who is mismanaged by his agent."

Other translations are going with "bitter" rather than "sad."  Regardless, the lawyers will certainly be earning their keep.

"Lawyers will solve this thing. It will be a long story."

There's little doubt in my mind that there are new levels of crazy we can step up to from here.  And not just because of the lawyers or the previously talked about Mattia Destro angle.

"...the giallorossi would like to acquire [Salah] on loan with forced option to buy- but there could be some players involved in the deal. Wingback Luis Filipe would fill a need for Roma, but he's also being pursued by Atletico Madrid. Chelsea could also acquire center back Romagnoli, a player Milan hasn't been able to acquire yet."

-source: Gianluca Di Marzio

What the what?