While we’re in the midst of watching Roma bottle another transfer, this time by haggling over contractual terms that make Porto midfielder Rodrigo Mora’s loan a €50 million obligation, I thought our time might be better spent taking a closer look at the club’s most recent signing. In stark contrast to Mora and many others before him, Roma landed Atlético Madrid full-back Nahuel Molina with minimal delay—no bickering over clauses, conditions, or formulas, no outrageous transfers, and nary a whiff
of agent shenanigans.
It’s not often that the middle section of the Roma-Atlético Madrid Venn diagram overlaps, but when it does, we immediately turn to our colleagues at Into the Calderon, where site manager Jeremy Beren was kind enough to provide some insight into Roma’s newest recruit.
Now that the books have closed on Molina at Atleti, how would you characterize his tenure there? Was he a success, a disappointment, or something in between? And what factors shaped that perception?
Jeremy Beren: I would characterize Molina’s tenure as “more disappointment than success.” By the end, most Atleti fans were frustrated and over the experience of watching him, but in his first year or so at the club, he was among LaLiga’s top full-backs. Ultimately though, Molina never showed much improvement from that first season. And that was three years ago. He was largely a substitute for the past two seasons, and he suffered from a lack of confidence at times. His departure feels necessary, if not overdue, from our perspective.
What are Molina’s greatest strengths and most glaring weaknesses? Are there any aspects of his game that have gone unnoticed?
JB: Now for the good news about Molina: when given space to run into, he’s pretty dangerous! Molina has great timing and technique to arrive in the area and finish off moves; last season, he scored two absolute thunderbolts from outside the box against Getafe and Real Madrid. His attacking quality is his best asset, though he’s not a great crosser of the ball.
Where does Molina struggle? In his own half. He is not a great 1v1 defender. He is not great at tracking runners. He doesn’t anticipate well and is prone to positional mistakes in a mid- to low-block. He faced challenges at Atlético in that respect because Cholo Simeone demands a lot of his full-backs, and Molina didn’t always find a good blend between defending and attacking.
That said, Molina is a decent athlete and a strong runner, and he rarely suffered injuries here. By all accounts, he was a true pro and never complained about his contract or his playing time even after he lost his starting role.
Gasperini’s system is tailor-made for an attack-minded wing-back, so could this environment yield more consistency from Molina?
JB: When I first saw Molina being linked to Roma, I thought on paper that it would be a great match. Molina performed best at Atleti when he could focus on attacking as a wing-back, and I expect he’ll find a lot of comfort within Gasperini’s philosophy and approach. Plus, he’ll get to keep playing Champions League football while maintaining a similar salary to the one he enjoyed at Atleti and swapping one beautiful capital city for another. It looks like an ideal move for him.
How would you describe Molina’s relationship with the Atlético fanbase? Was he appreciated despite those inconsistencies, or was it ultimately just time to move on?
JB: Molina’s relationship with the fans was warm at first, but it grew fairly frosty over the past couple of years and reached its nadir last August, when a section of supporters booed him at the club’s “Welcome Night” for new signings. There was general dissatisfaction with the standard of his performances, and a clean break really is the best for everyone.
When Atlético signed Molina from Udinese, what did they think they were getting, and did he ultimately become that player?
JB: Fairly or not, Atlético hoped that Molina would replicate Kieran Trippier’s impact at the club: a reasonably-priced, attack-minded full-back who could grow into a responsible defender. Molina didn’t become that player, but it’s not all his fault. He has really intriguing traits and he certainly has offensive quality, but he’s lacked consistency and the competition for his place at Atleti didn’t make him a better player. A fresh start at Roma could easily reinvigorate his club career.
Big thanks to Jeremy for his time and insight, and let’s hope his Roma-Molina instincts are correct! In the meantime, you can catch all his work at Into the Calderon and on social media.
And just because I love this anthem…
