Mourinho successor
©IMAGO
When things are basically going well, it’s easier to take something worthwhile from even weaker performances – AS Roma’s performance in Florence on Sunday evening can perhaps be described in this or similar way. After the final whistle, the score was 2-2 between the fifth-placed Serie A side from the capital and the home team, who were five points behind in eighth place. Defender Diego Llorente equalized for the Giallorossi in the fifth minute of added time with a powerful shot after a header from his defensive colleague Evan Ndicka. Five days after the exhilarating football festival in the Europa League against a weakened Brighton (4-0), this appearance by Roma underlines the effect that coach Daniele De Rossi has had on his team since taking over from José Mourinho in mid-January.
Points after being behind haven’t really been a hallmark of AS so far this season. Nine in total mean midfield in the comparison of the Italian upper house, but with 13 deficits there have already been eight defeats – seven of them under Mourinho (for statistics). In fact, there had been a deficit in eleven games under De Rossi three times before: in the only defeat under the ex-captain so far against industry leader Inter (2:4) and in the European Cup intermediate round games against Feyenoord (1:1; 5:3 nE). .
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The 40-year-old De Rossi has breathed new life into the proud club from the Eternal City. Mourinho, who was almost universally celebrated in previous years for his success in the Conference League and reaching the Europa League final, had previously no longer managed to get so many good results from his tried and tested defensive tactics that belied the poorer performances could become. After its last game for Roma, a 1:3 loss at Milan, the team slipped to ninth place and the leadership was pulled out.
De Rossi at Roma: Best points average in club history
De Rossi, on the other hand, embodies with his game more or less the opposite of what Mourinho stood for at the end, he has rekindled Roma and conveys playful joy. In addition, this translates into goals: 4:0 against Cagliari, 3:0 at Frosinone, 3:2 against Torino, 4:1 at Monza and the also mentioned high-scoring games against Florence, Inter and Brighton. Those experts who predicted a difficult time when Mourinho’s team was taken over by an inexperienced coach or who feared that his great love’s own monument would be scratched are now being proven wrong.
Although eleven games is not a particularly large sample, the 2.36 points average that De Rossi currently has is the best value in the club’s history for coaches who sat on the bench for more than one game. Better than Luciano Spalletti, Claudio Ranieri or Fabio Capello – and also significantly better than Mourinho. This will probably be corrected, at the latest if De Rossi signs a follow-up contract – for now he has only been signed until the end of the season. The fact that this has long been predicted in the Italian newspapers – two years are being discussed – is, however, hardly surprising.
“Roma is one of the most emotional clubs in Italy – a fact that Mourinho was able to use for a long time. He was extremely popular there,” explains Jatin Dietl, Area Manager Transfermarkt Italy. “After Francesco Totti, De Rossi is probably the greatest legend in the club’s history, at least the younger ones. The fact that someone like that comes along, takes over the helm and gets the club back on the road to success is a special story. After his failed attempt in the second division with SPAL last year, this development was actually not necessarily foreseeable. De Rossi not only takes Roma along emotionally, but also proves that he can develop tactically – as he did in his time as a professional, where he progressed from hothead to director. Of course, he still has to prove that this will last over a certain period of time. But so far it seems as if he could become another of this new generation of former intelligent midfielders like Xabi Alonso, Xavi or Thiago Motta, who are currently making their coaching mark on the football world. In the meantime, he had learned from, of all people, Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi.”
Dybala & Pellegrini thank: Joy of playing under De Rossi at AS Roma
Under Mourinho, Roma typically played with a back three and a relatively solid block in midfield. Although this ensured defensive stability for a long time, it came at the massive expense of creativity, particularly in the last few months. Meanwhile, under De Rossi, Roma has at least mostly returned to the 4-3-3 of the former AS coaches, under whom he himself played.
Attacker Paulo Dybala, arguably the best player in the squad, has not only scored eight goals in ten games since then, but has not even been injured. Whether this is related to more intensive training sessions, which the Italian media attest to the coach, cannot be conclusively assessed from a distance. It is undisputed that a fit Dybala is better than someone who has to miss several days every three weeks.
Lorenzo Pellegrini, who has had a very difficult time under Mourinho, especially this year, is another example: the Roman native is something of a legitimate successor to Totti and De Rossi in the squad and team captain. However, his enthusiasm for playing has clearly returned under his (not direct) predecessor as captain, and here too his scoring values speak for themselves with five goals and three assists in eleven games. De Rossi also showed courage by changing the goalkeeper from the not always reliable veteran Rui Patrício to Mile Svilar, who has since turned out to be a penalty killer. The 24-year-old will be among the winners in Tuesday’s Serie A market value update.
Mistake against Fiorentina: Learning ability as De Rossi’s next task
However, all of this does not mean that De Rossi is completely free from criticism: that he returned to the little-loved three-man chain against the attacking Florence in order to create predominance in the midfield – which failed – and Leipzig loanee Angeliño on the right instead of the traditional left The novice trainer is blamed for using the side. “In the end, De Rossi started today with two players out of position. Maybe even with players in the starting line-up who would have needed a break, even though players in the same positions were available, and with a system that they had actually already (successfully) moved away from,” stated “Sonntagsshot” in the Roma Forum .
“N_C_L” also thinks: “As already mentioned, it was extremely questionable to dare to make such experiments in the lineup after our wave of success in such an important game against a direct competitor. (…) Got off lightly and hope that De Rossi analyzes his mistakes. A threesome would have been very possible today.” If the previously acclaimed coach is willing to learn from these mistakes, this would only prove even more that Roma hired exactly the right man in the right situation.
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