Chris Smalling says he can see his long-term future in Italy if his season-long loan move from Manchester United to Roma is successful.
Smalling has joined the Serie A club until June 2020 after falling out of favour at Old Trafford following the £80m arrival of Harry Maguire.
The defender was officially presented as a Roma player at a press conference on Friday morning and suggested he could look to make the move permanent.
“This is an opportunity that came to me that I was very interested in, and I was very eager to come,” he said.
“It happened very quickly and now I focus on the next game, getting up to speed with training in terms of the manager’s methods and then hopefully have a very good season.
“To be able to have the chance at a big club, and then if it prolongs and the club is happy then I can definitely see a longer-term future in Italy.”