Rome wasn't built in a day.
And like his new home, José Mourinho is gradually shaping a team in his image.
Pragmatic, leaving the beautiful game aside as often, his Roma shows encouraging results.
In the fight for the top 4 in Serie A, the Wolf is on the right track in the Europa League.
In a favorable position after the victory (2-0) in the first leg, Roma will go to Real Sociedad on Thursday to ensure their qualification.
To discover
Serie A standings
Serie A fixtures and results
After winning the Europa League Conference, but seeing the Champions League elude him, the Portuguese coach is making sure his team progresses.
Arriving in the summer of 2021, the Special One has certainly discovered the lowest quality squad it has had under its command since leaving Porto in 2004. As he said last year: "we must
not expect titles with this squad
”.
But now, new players, bearers of hope, have arrived, including one in particular: Paulo Dybala.
José Mourinho, moved after the title in the Europa League Panoramic Conference
Supported by his entire team
In the middle of the Matic, Belotti or other Wijnaldum, he was the real beam of light for the Roman summer transfer window in 2022. Greatly desired by Mourinho, Paulo Dybala made the choice of Roma and he should not regret it.
Welcomed like the messiah by his new supporters, Dybala has become the little prince of the Olympic Stadium in Rome.
His performances speak for him (9 goals, 7 assists and involved in 40% of the goals) and earned him praise from his coach.
"
Paulo is a player who makes the team and the coach better,
" declared the Portuguese shortly after his arrival.
Besides the Argentinian, the other recruits are profiles wanted by Mourinho.
Wishing for a better bench depth but with limited means, he therefore had to adapt.
By betting on experienced players at the end of the contract like Matic, he has won his bet.
And where he succeeds is by getting the buy-in from his entire team.
When Lorenzo Pellegrini is "
honored and proud to work with
", Tammy Abraham describes José Mourinho "
like an uncle
".
His divisive side seems to have turned on the right side in Rome.
The results without the game, the “special” Mourinho
If some supporters are critical of the game offered by his team, the former Tottenham coach has his reasons.
Not used to producing a great show, he tried to set up an offensive system at the start of the season.
Without success, with a limited staff that said.
So since then, despite Saturday's crazy game against Sassuolo (3-4), Roma have the worst attack in the top 7 of Serie A (35 goals) and 9 of their 14 victories have only been with one goal away.
Suffice to say that the Romans stress, more than they benefit in front of the matches of their team.
In the meantime, the Giallorossi are on schedule for their goals.
Still in the race for the Champions League and in a good position in the Europa League, life with José Mourinho could still last a while.
Especially since the main interested party likes Rome: "
I'm happy every day I arrive on the training ground and that's something I can't deny,
" he confessed at the end of the season. last.
And if some rumors sent him to the bench of Portugal in January, the Mou would have left to stay.
Finally in the long term?
When he arrived in Rome, he was clear in insisting on the need for time: “
We have a great ambition and we want to build a future worthy of the history of this club, even if it will take time.
I know what I want and what they asked me to do, the project is clear.
The Portuguese then needed to know his squad.
Today, he has contributed to the progression of these players and the foundations for a competitive team are laid: Ibanez-Mancini in defense, Cristane and Pellegrini in the middle and Abraham and Dybala in front.
Lorenzo Pellegrini, captain of AS Roma.
Andrea Staccioli / Insidefoto / PANORAMIC
If the success from the first season in the Conference League was a good surprise, Mourinho does not forget the idea behind the Roman project: "Roma does
not want short-term success, they want to reach the top and stay there over the years
.”
So his Roma is structured and taking shape even if, according to him, some forget that Roma's squad is no longer one of the best in Italy: "
Whistling a young player who loses a ball, because he missed a control, a pass… Cafu and Maicon are no longer there, neither Conti, nor Totti, nor other phenomena who played here.
People have not yet understood the value of this team.
»
Always ready to surprise us...
"
I may wait until the end of the season to talk,
" he added after the victory against Héllas Verone (1-0).
A message addressed to its leaders?
If his management "
intends to continue with him
", the decision rests with the Special One.
By finally registering for the long term with a club (he has never spent more than three seasons in a club), he could finalize the construction of his team with new recruitments, to seek a title.
But unpredictable, as always, the continuity of the Special One at Roma beyond 2024 is far from being written in stone.
But there is no doubt that the Giallorossi would sign today to see Mourinho win Serie A and say the famous: “
Vini, Vidi, Vici!
So much in his image.