Report: Serie A clubs want to sign FC Dallas forward Ricardo Pepi 

TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Report

Is Italy the next stop on the Ricardo Pepi hype train?

Reporter Fabrizio Romano, an expert on all transfer-related items, especially concerning Serie A, said an unnamed club’s president wanted to sign Pepi in January.

“I want to sign Ricardo Pepi. I have to find a way and I want to sign this boy,” Romano said the conversation went, as he detailed on the CBS Sports Que Golazo podcast. “Remember this name because this boy is incredible. And I said let’s see what happens then. They had no chance to sign Pepi on deadline day, but Italian clubs are already looking for him. So maybe, sorry Dallas fans, enjoy the player, but I think his future will be in Europe because this boy is really interesting.”

Pepi is enjoying a meteoric rise in MLS this year. The 18-year-old homegrown has cemented his starting role with FC Dallas, scoring 12 goals and two assists across 22 appearances (17 starts).

He also converted the decisive penalty kick in the MLS All-Star Game presented by Target and scored during his debut for the US men’s national team, a critical 4-1 win at Honduras in Concacaf World Cup Qualifying.

Should Pepi go to Italy, he’d join Tanner Tessmann (Venezia) and Bryan Reynolds (AS Roma) among a host of former FC Dallas players scooped up by European suitors. Of course, FC Dallas academy product Weston McKennie (Juventus) is another big name in Serie A.