The post-Mourinho era officially begins at Roma. Daniele De Rossi, on the eve of his debut on the Giallorossi bench against Hellas Verona, spoke in what essentially became his introductory press conference.
With a six-month contract on his future, De Rossi stated, “There are no other clauses or details; I signed a blank contract, and the club was clear about the duration and future prospects. I couldn’t say no to Roma. In life, some refuse, and some dive into the fray. So I decided to come I will fight to the death to stay here and will play all my cards.”
THE FULL PRESS CONFERENCE
What Roma do you want to see:
“When a new coach takes charge, players often give everything in the initial training sessions. It’s always like that, and the first practices don’t offer substantial insights. We need to see how well we can maintain this intensity, but the players’ response has been incredible. We have a couple of new concepts to introduce, but we don’t want to create confusion in the early days.”
Did you speak to Totti:
“Yes, I received a congratulatory message from Francesco Totti, expressing his surprise. We’ve had a couple of conversations, and we plan to meet soon.”
What are your Challenges and Goals this season:
“If, by the end of the season, we are in the top four, that would make me happy. It’s a challenging but achievable goal. When a coach is changed, there’s always some issue because that’s how it goes. I don’t need to analyze the problems too much; instead, we need to start from scratch and understand what we need to improve.”
Coaching Philosophy: “I’m not Guardiola; he brought something new, like Conte or Simeone. I’m not at their level, and I don’t know if I have that talent. If our team becomes quickly recognizable, and the players know what to do on the field effectively, it would make me happy.”
Europa League and Future: “The ownership has been clear about our contract duration and the nature of my stay. I would have signed a blank contract. There are no conditions regarding the Europa League or any other conditions for staying. I want to play my cards, and I’ve asked to be treated as a coach, not as a former player. I’ll fight to the end to stay at Roma.”
Transition into Coaching: “Obviously, I didn’t dream of coming here when they were parting ways with a coach like Mourinho. Football is full of coaches who initially signed as caretakers and later proved their abilities for confirmation; it’s not rare, but it can happen. I already feel like I am the coach of Roma, but I don’t want to sever ties with the players.”
Did you talk with Mourinho: “Yes, I’ve heard from him, but we were always in contacts. Now it’s timeto focus on my job and what I have to do.”
What about tomorrow’s match against Verona?
Many things can happen. It’s a solid team coached by a Baroni who is a great coach and a great man. Verona has great physicality and a well-defined style of play. The emotion of the debut shouldn’t play tricks on us; we all need to be very focused.
