Serie A's deadline-day defensive double

Theate comes home

Arthur Theate is not a new face at the Dall'Ara. The Belgian full-back made his name at Bologna before moving to Rennes and then Eintracht Frankfurt, and now the club have paid to bring him back. Football Italia reports the fee is potentially €15 million, a figure that likely includes performance-related clauses given the 'up to' framing.

For Vincenzo Italiano's side, Theate knows the city, the system and what Italiano asks of his defenders: that familiarity is the point. Bologna finished fifth in Serie A last season and are back in European football. Adding a player who already understands the culture is a low-risk, high-familiarity move. He left as a prospect. He returns as a proven top-flight defender.

Roma reinforce at the back

Across Italy, Roma have moved to address their own defensive concerns by signing Leonardo Balerdi from Marseille on a loan deal that includes an option to buy, as confirmed by Football Italia. The Argentine centre-back spent several seasons in Ligue 1 and brings experience of high-pressure European football to a Roma side that has had a complicated few years.

The financial terms of the buy option have not been disclosed. What is clear is that Roma's new management structure wants bodies and quality at the back, and Balerdi gives them another option in central defence as the season gets underway.

Defensive reinforcements, confirmed

Bologna now have Theate back in their backline alongside the European experience he picked up at Eintracht Frankfurt. Roma add a centre-back who started the majority of Marseille's Ligue 1 matches last season. Both deals were confirmed on 30 August, with Theate's move costing Bologna up to €15 million and Balerdi's buy option terms still undisclosed.