AS Roma's Bosnia forward Edin Dzeko was left out of their Serie A match at Verona for the player's own good amid transfer speculation, coach Paulo Fonseca said after Saturday's 0-0 draw.
Dzeko, Roma's leading scorer for the last four seasons, has been linked with a move to champions Juventus and was an unused substitute in Saturday's match, Roma's first of the season.
"It's been a difficult weak for Dzeko," said Fonseca. "I took the decision for him not to play and I did it mainly for his own good. It's obvious that in a normal situation Dzeko would have played."
Fonseca was pleased with Roma's first-half performance and impressed with Henrikh Mkhitaryan's effort as a false nine.
"We played really well in the first half and missed four or five scoring chances," he said. "If we had scored a quick goal, that would have changed the match.
"I liked Mkhitaryan's performance as a false nine but we will need another forward and are working on that."
(Writing by Brian Homewood; Editing by Ken Ferris)
