This article is the final part of a five part series. Read part one here, part two here, part three here and part four here.
A large part of Roma’s 2017/18 journey to the Champions League semi-finals could be attributed to the colossal presence of Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson.
Following the departure of Wojciech Szczęsny to Juventus at the start of the campaign, Alisson secured his spot as Roma’s number one. The Brazilian reserved some of his finest performances for the European stage. The two goals lost to Liverpool in the semi-final second leg were the only two Alisson conceded at the Olimpico in the whole Champions League campaign. He also kept a highly impressive 17 clean sheets in the 38-game Serie A season.
Alisson had proved to be one of the finest exponents of his trade in world football, which wasn’t lost on Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. In summer 2018, the Anfield club, who had gone on to lose the Champions League final to Real Madrid following their defeat of Roma, paid the Giallorossi £67 million to secure the services of the 25-year-old, a deal that made the Brazilian the world’s most expensive goalkeeper. Liverpool’s faith in Alisson was rewarded when they went one step better in 2019, winning the Champions League. The commanding Brazilian played a starring role in the final against Tottenham Hotspur – and it came as no surprise to Roma fans that Mo Salah scored Liverpool’s opening goal of the match.
Swedish goalkeeper Robin Olsen, who had played all five of his country’s games at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, was signed from FC Copenhagen as Alisson’s replacement. Veteran shot-stopper Antonio Mirante also joined the Giallorossi from Bologna that same summer to provide competition for Olsen.
Other notable signings ahead of Eusebio Di Francesco’s second season in charge were defender Davide Santon and midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo from Inter Milan; further midfielders Bryan Cristante (Atalanta), Javier Pastore (PSG) and Steven Nzonzi arrived in the Eternal city alongside a new attacking option, Justin Kluivert, a highly promising teenager from Ajax and son of former Dutch international striker Patrick. The arrivals of Santon and Zaniolo from Inter were part of a deal that saw dynamic midfielder Radja Nainggolan, arguably one of Roma’s best performing players in recent years, make the switch to Inter Milan in a ‘players plus cash’ transfer. Kevin Strootman, who had made more than 100 appearances for Roma since joining from PSV in 2013, departed for Marseille.
The 2018/19 season had a mixed start for Di Francesco and Roma. Edin Dzeko picked up from where he had left off in previous campaigns – the Bosnian brought back memories of Stamford Bridge when his wonderful left foot volley earned Roma a last-gasp victory at Torino on day one of the Serie A calendar. However, the Giallorossi failed to win any of their next four league matches – drawing two and losing two – leaving them in fourteenth place with only five points from a possible 15.
Three consecutive league wins followed, which (crucially for Di Francesco and his players) included a 3-1 victory over Lazio in the season’s first Derby della Capitale. Lorenzo Pellegrini capitalised on a Lazio defensive mix-up to put Roma ahead with a clever back-heel on the stroke of half-time. Midway through the second period it was Roma’s turn for some chaotic defending. Seemingly under little pressure, Federico Fazio lost control of the ball 35 yards from goal, allowing Lazio’s star striker Ciro Immobile to steal possession and fire a right foot shot past Olsen. However, parity lasted only four minutes, as Aleksandar Kolarov crashed a trademark left foot free kick into the Lazio net from the edge of the box. With four minutes remaining, Fazio atoned for his earlier error by heading a Pellegrini free kick into the net in front of a jubilant Curva Sud. The sun was shining on the Olimpico and Roma that Saturday afternoon as the Giallorossi secured their first back-to-back wins of the season.
Fortunes remained mixed for Di Francesco and Roma in the weeks following the derby success; the Gialliorossi didn’t manage another pair of back-to-back wins until the last two games of December. By the time the winter break arrived, Rome were in sixth place in the league, having won eight, drawn six and lost five of their opening 19 matches.
On the European front, Roma had secured a place in the Champions League knock-out stage for the second consecutive season; the Giallorossi finished second behind Spanish giants Real Madrid and ahead of Czech side Viktoria Plzeň and Russians CSKA Moscow in Group G.
Prior to the first leg of their last-16 tie against Portuguese champions Porto in mid-February (which Roma won 2-1 at the Olimpico), the Giallorossi had started the second half of their league campaign with two wins (at home to Torino and away to Chievo) and two draws (away to Atalanta and at home to AC Milan). However, between the Atalanta and Milan matches, Roma were humiliated by Fiorentina in the quarter finals of the Coppa Italia – a Federico Chiesa hat-trick inspired the hosts to a 7-1 victory over Di Francesco’s side. La Viola’s front line tore Roma apart time and again at a rain soaked Artemio Franchi stadium. The sending off of Eden Dzeko, for arguing with the referee, rubbed further salt in deep Giallorossi wounds. Initial images appeared to suggest the Bosnian had spat at Gianluca Manganiello, but the official later stated that Dzeko had been dismissed for insulting him.
Dark clouds were gathering over the Olimpico and, with pressure building on their manager, two upcoming matches looked likely to define Roma’s season and the future of Eusebio Di Francesco: the second Rome derby of the season on 2 March and the return tie against Porto in Portugal four days later.
The 150th Derby della Capitale in Serie A history proved to be a disaster for Roma. A rampant Lazio scored three times without reply and Kolarov was sent off for two yellow card offences in the game’s final minutes. A Rome derby defeat represents disaster for one half of the city on any occasion, but when it occurs a matter of days before a crucial European tie, the ramifications are even greater. One could not help but feel that Di Francesco and his Roma side were fighting for more than a place in the Champions League quarter finals when they flew to Portugal.
In the first leg, 19-year-old Nicolo Zaniolo announced himself on the European stage by scoring Roma’s two goals, becoming the youngest Italian player to score twice in a Champions League match in the process. However, Adrián López’s strike for the visitors meant a 1-0 win at home would be enough to send Porto through to the last eight.
In front of an expectant Estádio do Dragão crowd, Porto attacked Roma from the start, and they got their reward on 26 minutes when Tiquinho Soares tapped in from close range. Eleven minutes later, Roma were level – De Rossi converting a spot-kick after Perotti had been fouled in the box. De Rossi them limped off with a muscle problem on the stroke of half-time and was replaced by Pellegrini. Seven minutes after the restart, Porto were back in front, Moussa Marega smashing the ball past a helpless Olsen from close range. Both sides had chances to add to the scoring but, after 90 minutes and the aggregate score tied at 3-3, the game moved into extra-time.
Just as it looked as though a penalty shoot-out would be required, Porto got a golden opportunity to decide the tie with four minutes remaining. Roma thought they had survived a scare when Maxi Pereira’s dangerous ball across goal evaded everyone, but Fernando’s fall to the ground had alerted the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). After a quick check, it was clear that Alessandro Florenzi had pulled back his opponent in the box and a penalty was awarded. Alex Telles’ cool finish sent Porto into the quarter finals and the Giallorossi home empty-handed.
Di Francesco was to pay the ultimate price for the European defeat, learning the next day that his time as Roma manager had been brought to a premature end by the club.
“When Roma call you, it’s impossible to say no”
The day after Di Francesco’s departure, Roma welcomed a familiar face back to the dugout. “I’m delighted to be coming back home,” former Roma player, manager and lifelong Giallorossi fan Claudio Ranieri said following his appointment as manager for the second time. “When Roma call you, it’s impossible to say no.”
Nine years earlier, Ranieri had almost led Roma to the most incredible of Scudetto triumphs: his side went on a 24-match unbeaten run and overhauled Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan at the top of the table, only to fall agonisingly short in the closing weeks of the campaign.
This time round, his spell in charge was somewhat quieter, though he did help lift some of the gloom surrounding the Olimpico when he guided the Giallorossi to a 2-1 victory over Empoli in his first game back in charge.
Two defeats followed – a 2-1 loss at SPAL and a 4-1 thumping from Napoli at the Olimpico – but Ranieri’s Roma closed out the season with an unbeaten run, winning five and drawing four of their final nine games, and finishing in sixth place in Serie A.
More Roman tears as De Rossi bids farewell
“The big point about De Rossi is that everyone associates Roma with Totti, but Roma fans see themselves in De Rossi. Because he’s someone who, through determination and sheer will, got to play for the club that he loves. Whereas I think they look at Totti as someone who had a God-given talent who they can’t relate to as much as they can Daniele [De Rossi]. He was someone who realised the dream they all have.”
James Horncastle, Golazzo podcast
The outpouring of affection from Roma fans that accompanied Daniele De Rossi’s farewell lap of honour on Sunday 26 May 2019 – following a final day of the season victory over Parma – support Horncastle’s words.
Earlier that May, Roma had announced that they would not be renewing 35-year-old De Rossi’s contract. From the outside, the situation didn’t appear to have been handled efficiently, with Roma CEO Guido Fienga apologising to De Rossi for not approaching him sooner. The midfielder, in turn, stated that he wasn’t happy with the club’s decision, but he had accepted it and held no resentment.
Believing he still had something to offer as a player, De Rossi agreed a deal to join Argentinian side Boca Juniors – a club he had expressed admiration for – following his departure from the Eternal City.
The iconic midfielder’s final match for Roma marked his 616th appearance for the club, making him the Giallorossi’s second-most capped player of all time, after Totti. Unlike Totti, De Rossi hadn’t tasted Scudetto success; in his 18 years as a Roma first team player, the club finished runners-up in the league an agonising nine times.
Roma legends Bruno Conti and Totti were among those in attendance at the Olimpico to witness De Rossi’s last stand. Prior to his lap of honour, De Rossi exchanged hugs with a line-up of Roma players and staff on the centre of the park. Fellow Romans Lorenzo Pellegrini and Alessandro Florenzi, who would inherit the captain’s armband from the departing midfielder, were the final two players De Rossi embraced. The last, and longest, hug was reserved for manager Claudio Ranieri, who was also making his final bow in front of the Roma fans. Earlier in the evening, Ranieri had shed tears at the side of the park when Roma’s Curva Sud unveiled a banner in his honour.
De Rossi and Ranieri were not the final Roman departures that summer. Only three weeks later, Francesco Totti announced that he was standing down as club director, ending his 30-year official association with Roma. The Giallorossi’s greatest-ever player claimed his views weren’t being taken into consideration by the club’s owners. The 42-year-old stated that the situation was ‘far worse than retiring as a player’. “Leaving Roma is like dying,” he said. “I feel like it would be better if I died.”
It had been reported that Totti’s relationship with club president James Pallotta had deteriorated, but the American claimed to have offered Totti the role of Roma’s technical director. However, following De Rossi’s exit and his own discontent, Totti spoke out against the club’s hierarchy. “The main focus of certain people has been to remove Romans from Roma,” he claimed. “In the end, the truth came out, because they achieved what they wanted.”
While we may not know the full ins and outs of Totti’s departure, the fact that times were changing at Roma is beyond doubt. There were many questions to be answered: could Florenzi or Pellegrini step up to the role of bandiera? Would Edin Dzeko’s prolific goalscoring form (he was Roma’s top scorer in each of the previous three seasons) continue? And who would become Roma’s fifth manager in six years?
Launch of AS Roma Femminile
Season 2018/19 saw the launch of AS Roma Women (AS Roma Femminile). In the summer of 2018, the club bought the licence of Res Roma, who had been competing in the women’s Serie A league for five years.
Roma finished fourth in the Italian women’s top-flight in both of their first two seasons. In May 2021, they secured their first silverware, beating AC Milan on penalties to win the Coppa Italia final at Sassuolo’s Mapei Stadium.
Lifting the Coppa Italia trophy as captain was Elisa Bartoli, an Italian international, Rome native and fan of I Lupi. Bartoli joined Roma’s new project in the summer of 2018 from Fiorentina, where she had won the league title in 2017 and the Coppa Italia in 2016 and 2017.
Now in their fifth season, Roma Women, led by manager Alessandro Spugna, are looking to build on their Coppa Italia success (they were also runners-up in 2022), last season’s second place finish in Serie A, and challenge for a league title that has been won by a dominant Juventus for each of the past five seasons.
Fonseca era begins in Rome
When Roma defeated Shakhtar Donetsk in the last 16 of the 2018 Champions League, elements of the Ukrainian team’s style must have struck a chord with the Roma hierarchy; it was to Shakhtar’s Portuguese coach, Paolo Fonseca, that the Giallorossi turned to in 2019 to become full-time replacement for Eusebio Di Francesco.
Fonseca had guided Shakhtar to the Ukrainian league title and cup double in each of his three seasons with the club and it was hoped that his magic touch could lead the Giallorossi to their first silverware in more than a decade.
Ahead of the new campaign, goalkeeper Robin Olsen went on loan to Bologna, while forward Patrik Schick was loaned to German side RB Leipzig. Greek centre-back Kostas Manolas, Roma’s Champions League hero against Barcelona in 2018, moved to Napoli for €36 million. Among key arrivals at the club were Leonardo Spinazzola from Juventus, Amadou Diawara (Napoli), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Arsenal) and goalkeeper Pau López, who was brought in from Real Betis as Olsen’s replacement.
Fonseca’s new look Roma side drew their first two matches of a league campaign that would end up being suspended for almost four months, from the beginning of March 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the world.
The fixture list had thrown up a Rome derby in matchday two, and Fonseca can’t have been too disappointed with a 1-1 draw in his first Derby della Capitale outing. His Roma side took the lead in the 17th minute courtesy of an Aleksandar Kolarov penalty. But Lazio’s Luis Alberto restored parity in the second half.
The Giallorossi recorded their first win of the season at home to Sassuolo in week three. Bryan Cristante, Eden Dzeko, Mkhitaryan and Justin Kluivert all scored in a first half blitz that saw Roma lead 4-0 after 33 minutes. Italian international Domenico Berardi halved the arrears with two second half goals for the visitors.
Fonseca’s first competitive defeat as Roma manager arrived in week five with a disappointing 2-0 home loss to Fiorentina. However, they responded with a six-match unbeaten run, which resulted in the Giallorossi sitting third in the Serie A table after 11 games. The six-game sequence included impressive home victories over AC Milan and Napoli (both 2-1) and a 4-0 thumping of Udinese at the Stadio Friuli.
Attacking midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo appeared to be excelling under Fonseca’s stewardship. The 20-year-old was on the scoresheet in the wins over Milan, Udinese and Napoli and was quickly becoming indispensable to Fonseca’s side. However, Zaniolo’s season would soon be cut short as he went on to suffer an anterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee in January. Zaniolo made a brief return to the Roma first team when the league resumed – following the lifting of some COVID restrictions in summer 2020 – but he suffered a similar injury shortly afterwards, resulting in one of Italian football’s brightest prospects missing the entire 2020/21 campaign.
When the 2019/20 season stopped for the Christmas break, Fonseca’s Roma were fourth in the Serie A table, having won 10, drawn five and lost two of their opening 17 games.
However, the New Year got off to a bad start with back-to-back home league defeats against Torino and Juventus. The Bianconeri also beat Roma in the Coppa Italia quarter finals later in January. The Giallorossi got back on track with a 3-1 win away at Genoa followed by a 1-1 draw in the second Rome derby of the season. Roma’s goal against Lazio was scored by Dzeko – his 99th for the Giallorossi – who was also wearing the captain’s armband. Despite inheriting the role of club captain following Daniele De Rossi’s departure in 2019, Roman midfielder Alessandro Florenzi was out of favour with Fonseca and, seeking more regular first-team football, opted to join Spanish side Valencia on loan until the end of the season.
In February, Roma’s mixed form continued with three league defeats and a solitary win in four matches. When Roma defeated Cagliari 4-3 in front of more than 14,000 fans in Sardinia on 1 March, nobody would have foreseen what was soon to come. Just over a week later, and with the deadly COVID-19 pandemic taking hold across the world, all sport in Italy was suspended, initially until 3 April. With the affects of the pandemic becoming more severe by the day – and Italy being hit particularly hard in these early stages – it soon became apparent that Serie A would not be resuming as early as April.
When top-flight matches did resume in the final week of June, strict COVID measures – including all games being played without supporters in attendance – were in place. The remaining 12 rounds of fixtures were played in a packed 39-day schedule. At a time when results and awards seemed largely academic, the records will show that Roma won eight, drew one and lost three of their last 12 matches and finished the 2019/20 Serie A season in fifth place.
As a result of the pandemic, the 2019/20 season’s European competitions were also delayed, and concluded in August. Roma had finished second in their Europa League group and had been drawn to play Spanish side Sevilla in the last 16. In place of the two-legged tie that had been scheduled for March, the two sides met in a one-off match on 6 August. At the neutral venue of Duisburg in Germany, Sevilla – winners of the tournament in 2006, 2007, 2014, 2015 and 2016 – defeated the Giallorossi 2-0 on their way to a remarkable sixth Europa League triumph in 14 years.
The COVID pandemic also had a big impact on the 2020/21 Serie A campaign – the ongoing absence of fans from Italian stadia gave the matches a surreal feeling. An administrative era regarding Amadou Diawara’s registration resulted in Roma being handed a 3-0 defeat in their opening league match at Verona, a game that had originally ended 0-0. This was, perhaps, a pre-cursor for a frustrating league campaign for Paolo Fonseca and his side. By the midway point, the Giallorossi were in fourth position and looked in good shape to challenge for one of the Champions League spots. However, a disappointing second half of the season – eight defeats from 18 fixtures – saw Roma finish in seventh place, their worst league finish since 2012.
An impressive run to the semi-finals of the Europa League brought Giallorossi fans some relief from a disappointing league season. Having qualified for the knock-out stage courtesy of topping Group A, Roma defeated Portuguese side SC Braga 5-1 on aggregate in the last 32. In the next round, the Giallorossi were handed a tough draw against Fonseca’s former side, Shakhtar Donetsk. However, Roma progressed to the quarter finals convincingly following another 5-1 aggregate win.
A two-leg tie against Dutch giants Ajax stood between Fonseca’s side and a place in the Europa League last four. Despite falling behind in the first leg in Amsterdam, Roma regrouped and – following a Pau López penalty save – second half goals from Lorenzo Pelligrini and Brazilian defender Roger Ibañez sealed an impressive 2-1 victory. A 1-1 draw at the Olimpico a week later set up a semi-final showdown with English side Manchester United.
At half-time of the semi-final first leg in Manchester, Roma led the hosts 2-1. However, a second half blitz from United, in which they scored five times without reply, brought pack chilling memories of Roma’s heavy Champions League defeat at the same venue in 2007. A 6-2 defeat was always going to be difficult to overturn, but a 3-2 win in the second leg (resulting in an 8-5 aggregate loss) in Rome restored an element of pride.
Edin Dzeko’s goal in the semi-final second leg would turn out to be his last in a Giallorossi shirt. Following six seasons at Roma – he finished the club’s top scorer in four of these – Dzeko left the Eternal City for Inter Milan. The Bosnian’s highly impressive 119 goals in 260 games means he is Roma’s third top goal scorer of all time, behind Roberto Pruzzo (138) and Francesco Totti (307).
Roma campaign changes lives forever
When Eldor Shomurodov signed for Roma in the summer of 2021, the Uzbek striker said it was ‘hard to explain the happiness’ he felt when his transfer announcement video led to a missing Polish girl being found just days after her picture was included in the social media clip.
Since 2019, Roma – working with international partner organisations – have been using their transfer announcement videos on social media to highlight the cases of missing children around the world. Since the campaign began, Roma have helped to find 12 missing children. “It is difficult to explain the happiness of having in some way contributed to the finding of one of these children and consequently to the relief of her family,” Shomurodov said. “I’m proud to be part of a club that uses the popularity of football in this way.”
Paul Rogers, Roma’s former Head of Digital Media and Chief Strategy Officer, explains that the idea behind Roma’s campaign has its roots in a 1990s pop music video.
I got the idea for the social media campaign using transfer announcements to help search for missing children from a pop video I remember watching back in 1993, the video for Soul Asylum’s ‘Runaway Train’ famously highlighted actual cases – with photos and names – of adolescents missing at the time. Taking inspiration from the use of milk cartons to display a photo of a missing child in America, the band decided to use a pop video played on MTV and music channels globally to try and help find 36 missing children. In the end, I think they helped locate 21 children. I remembered the video even though it wasn’t really my type of music because it was such a clever idea.
We wanted to use the viral nature of social media transfer announcements to help raise awareness for missing children and we knew we could release a video in Italy, and other videos around the world. We had a massive social media following and our previous funny/weird announcements generated incredible reach and awareness all over the world so we thought that at the exact moment when the world’s attention is on the club’s announcement, we could use our social media channels not for self-promotion but rather to help find missing children.
We had the idea, but we needed to partner with the experts to help us navigate what is a really complex issue – and that’s why we partnered with Telefono Azzurro in Italy and the International and National Centers for Missing and Exploited Children in America. I remember going into Jim Pallotta’s office and explaining the concept and he immediately loved it. To be honest, I knew he would like it as he was incredibly supportive of anything we did that could use our social media channels for social good – raising money for Syrian refugees in 2015, promoting gender equality, challenging racism, promoting Roma Cares initiatives etc.
Rogers recalls his ‘heart stopping for a moment’ when he got a call from the Missing People charity in London to inform him that an English teenage girl, who had featured in one of Roma’s videos, had been found safe and well.
It was such an amazing moment, probably better than any other moment of my career, to me, it was better than winning any match, and I’ve covered lots of winning cup finals, because it was a human life at stake, a child, and something we did played a part in helping to bring that girl home to her loved ones. In total, six children who featured in those videos in 2019 were found safe. Obviously, I left Roma after six years in November 2020, but the club have continued the campaign, which is brilliant, and they announced the twelfth child featured in one of the videos was found safe in August. That’s just incredible and I love that Roma have continued the campaign and continue to find new ways to use their platforms for good.
Paul Rogers, former Head of Digital Media and Chief Strategy Officer, AS Roma
Mour to follow
In May 2021, Roma – now owned by the Friedkin Group, who purchased a majority stake in the club in August 2020 – shocked the football world by announcing that Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho would be taking over from his compatriot Paolo Fonseca as manager. The charismatic coach had been sacked as manager of Tottenham Hotspur a little over two weeks before Roma’s announcement. Since winning a treble with Inter Milan in 2010, Mourinho had managed Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester United, before joining Spurs in 2019. Mourinho’s stock may not have been as high as it once was, but his arrival still marked a significant coup for Roma.
New tournament brings new hope
It’s Wednesday 25 May 2022. Albania’s National Arena in Tirana is the venue. We’re 32 minutes into the inaugural Europa Conference League final. A deft flick of Nicolo Zaniolo’s left foot lifts the ball over Feyenord goalkeeper Justin Bijlow. The ball lands in the net. It’s the first-ever goal in a Conference League final.
Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho was brought to Roma the previous summer and tasked with winning silverware. Though his side had endured more than a few bumps on the road, Zaniolo’s goal put the Giallorossi within touching distance of the club’s first European trophy in more than 60 years.
Let’s rewind to September 2021 – three games into Mourinho’s tenure – and Roma top the Serie A table with a 100% record. A 3-2 defeat to Hellas Verona on matchday four highlighted Roma’s fragilities. However, a goal from English striker Tammy Abraham – who joined the Giallrossi from Chelsea during the summer – secured a narrow home victory over Udinese the following week.
Matchday six of the league season brought Mourinho his first taste of the Derby della Capitale in the Roma dugout. His introduction to the fixture was an unhappy one. Lazio defeated Roma 3-2 in an end-to-end encounter. The Biancocelesti’s second goal was scored by Spanish international, and former Roma player Pedro, who Mourinho had deemed surplus to requirements in the summer.
Mourinho’s side lost a further five league matches before Christmas and – as the winter break arrived – sat sixth in the Serie A table. However, the Giallorossi’s most alarming loss was a 6-1 thrashing at the hands of Norwegians Bodø/Glimt in the Europa Conference League group stage. Having won their opening two group games – a 5-1 hammering of CSKA Sofia at the Olimpico and a 3-0 victory away to Zorya Luhansk – Roma travelled to a bitterly cold Norway on October 21 for matchday three.
The Norwegians, relatively unknown on the European stage, tore the Giallorossi apart, and the final score signalled one of the heaviest defeats in Jose Mourinho’s career. In the reverse fixture at the Olimpico, Roma had to rely on a late Roger Ibañez goal to rescue a 2-2 draw. However, further victories over Luhansk and Sofia saw Roma secure first place in the group and a spot in the last-16. Bodø/Glimt’s second place finish brought the reward of the knock-out round play-offs, where they defeated Scottish side Celtic to join the Giallorossi in the last-16. As fate would have it, Mourinho’s side would have to return to the scene of their Norwegian nightmare enroute to the final in Tirana.
Clamoroso all’Olimpico
If you’ve watched football on Italian TV, there’s a good chance you’ll have heard commentators use the word ‘clamoroso’ to describe events. Translations to ‘clamorous’ and ‘resounding’ are accurate, but, when used in relation to football, ‘clamoroso’ seems to add an element of chaos or madness. Whether my own translations are accurate or not, what happened at the Stadio Olimpico on 9 January 2022 certainly met the ‘clamoroso’ criteria.
The visit of Juventus is always a date circled in the calendars of Roma supporters. A defeat at AC Milan three days before Juve’s arrival – as the Serie A campaign resumed following the winter break – only increased the game’s significance for Mourinho’s side.
Tammy Abraham gave Roma the perfect start when he nodded home from a Jordan Veretout corner in the eleventh minute, but Juventus levelled shortly afterwards courtesy of a splendid finish from their Argentinian star Paulo Dybala.
No further goals were added before the half-time break, but Roma quickly took a firm grip of the match after the restart. In the forty-eighth minute, a Henrikh Mkhitaryan shot took a massive deflection to loop over former Roma goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny and into the Juventus net. However, there was nothing lucky about Roma’s next goal five minutes later. In a moment reminiscent of Francesco Totti, Roma captain Lorenzo Pellegrini curled a delightful free-kick from 25 yards into the top corner. The action replay from behind Pelligrini shows Roma’s number seven begin his celebratory run almost as soon as the ball leaves his left foot.
So, 53 minutes on the clock and all is well. Nineteen minutes later, Juventus defender Matteo De Sciglio is mobbed by his teammates; not only has De Sciglio scored his first Serie A goal in over four years, but he has capped a remarkable turnaround for the Turin side and given them a 4-3 lead. Clamoroso.
The chaos wasn’t over. With Roma desperate to find an equaliser, an Abraham volley from close range was blocked by Juve’s Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt. Following a VAR check, the referee decided the defender had blocked the shot with his arm. The decision looked harsh, as did the second yellow card issued to the bemused Dutchman. With Pellegrini preparing to take the resultant spot-kick, it seemed certain that Roma would snatch a late draw. But no. The captain was thwarted by Szczęsny. Clamoroso.
In a city that does nothing by half measures, the Juventus match could be described as ‘peak Roma’. But the 12-match unbeaten league run that followed equally matches the same description. A 3-0 win in the season’s second Rome derby was the highlight of this sequence and Roma’s domestic campaign. Abraham – who enjoyed an excellent first season in the Eternal City, scoring 27 goals in all competitions – netted twice before Pellegrini matched, or possibly bettered, his goal against Juventus with another delightful free-kick.
Despite the relatively strong finish to the season, Mourinho’s Roma could only finish sixth in Serie A, only one place, and one point, better off than they achieved under Paulo Fonseca the previous year.
A silver (golden) lining
Ultimately, Jose Mourinho delivered what Roma fans had craved for 14 long years. The Giallorossi’s reward for topping their Conference League group was a clash with Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem. A 2-1 aggregate win led to a quarter-final showdown, and an opportunity to exact revenge, against Bodø/Glimt. Revenge didn’t come in the first leg in Norway, however, as the home side defeated the Giallorossi once again. The 2-1 scoreline left the tie in the balance when the two sides met at the Olimpico a week later. Inspired by a Nicolo Zaniolo hat-trick – the highlights of this are well worth a watch – a rampant Roma finally exorcised the ghosts of Norway with a crushing 4-0 victory.
English side Leicester City provided a sterner test in the semi-finals but an eleventh minute goal from Tammy Abraham in the second leg in the Olimpico was enough to send Roma to Tirana after the sides had drawn the first leg 1-1 in England.
And thus, Roma arrived in Albania to play out what, to all intents and purposes, could be deemed an archetypal cup final. As is so often the case on the big occasion, players are gripped by tension and an element of fear. The fear of losing battles the yearning for victory. One moment of magic is often enough to tip the balance and, thankfully for Roma, it was Zaniolo who delivered the knock-out blow. Despite hitting the woodwork twice early in the second half, Feyenord couldn’t find an equaliser and captain Lorenzo Pellegrini held aloft Roma’s first European trophy since a Fairs Cup triumph in 1961. Not since Francesco Totti lifted the Coppa Italia in 2008 had a Roma captain collected the main prize from the winners’ rostrum.
The scenes may not have been as lavish as 2001’s Scudetto party, but the city of Rome celebrated in style, nonetheless. The victory also completed a full set of European honours for Jose Mourinho, who also became the first manager to win a European trophy with four different clubs.
So, mission accomplished for Mourinho is his first season, but will domestic success follow?