The last time I saw Daniele De Rossi was when he was happily sweating his way up one of the hills in Rome that morning in a T-shirt and shorts. On the back of the child-friendly bicycle sat the daughter and son, whom the father brought to school from the apartment at Engelsburg. De Rossi, the father of the family.
There will soon be less time for this role. The 44-year-old, an icon of the club since his 19 years as a player for the “Giallorossi”, is now supposed to save AS Roma as a coach, which was in free fall under his predecessor José Mourinho.
At the Trigoria training center south of Rome, the press room was crowded when De Rossi sat down on the podium for the press conference before the game against Verona. Black tracksuit, the club’s coat of arms with the Roman she-wolf on the left chest, his initials “GDR” on the left.
Man of clear words
The long beard shines well-groomed, as befits one that Italians have primarily known from commercials for beard care products in recent months. De Rossi’s answers are considered and to the point. Even as a player, he was considered a man of clear words, beyond the usual football talk.
De Rossi played 459 times for AS Roma, became world champion in 2006 and played 117 times for the national team. But De Rossi is inexperienced as a coach; in his first position last year at SPAL Ferrara in the second division, he failed miserably after just 17 games.
500,000 for six months
The current commitment as Roma coach is for him “a great opportunity”the contract negotiations only lasted a few moments. “I have said”says De Rossi of the telephone conversation with the Friedkins early in the morning, “Stake the amount you want, plus a bonus for reaching the Champions League and then you’re good to go”. According to media reports, De Rossi will receive 500,000 euros for the six-month contract, a fraction of the seven million annual salary of his predecessor Mourinho.
De Rossi was essentially the only option for the Friedkins. Only with the man born in the Roman suburb of Ostia was it possible to prevent an uprising in the Roma fan scene after Mourinho’s expulsion. Because the majority of the “Romanisti” idolize Mourinho, despite the disastrous results and the unsightly football. On the morning of the sacking, Roma fans flooded social media with insults for the Friedkins and declarations of love for Mourinho. It was only in the afternoon, when the signing of club icon De Rossi was publicly announced, that the wave of outrage subsided.
Mourinho: object of study for Mass psychology
Why Mourinho is so revered among AS Roma fans is suitable as an object of study in mass psychology, specializing in football. Mourinho’s sporting legacy is disastrous: 9th place in the table and AS Roma’s worst record in terms of points in 20 years, failed in the cup against local rivals Lazio and was forced to test the play-offs in the Europa League because the glorious Roma were left behind in the group by Slavia Prague.
In addition, performances that made you run away in the last two top games against Lazio and AC Milan, constantly complaining players, attempts to score free kicks, yellow and red cards galore, but no game idea. The sacking of a coach has rarely been more logical. But what made the Roma fans? They made a pilgrimage to Mourinho’s hotel in Rome and paid homage to the fired man with chants.
Possible explanation for popularity: “Wagenburg messages”
An explanation: Mourinho, one of the most successful coaches of all time with a total of 26 titles, has recently been less of a football coach than a tribune of the people. His message: We Romanists are against the rest of the world, the referees are against us, I stand up for you against the dark football forces. Wagenburg messages that fell on fertile ground in the proud but traditionally self-pitying Roma fan scene. There was never any reproach from the AS supporters for the 28 (!) red cards that Mourinho and his staff received in two and a half years because of their gripes on the sidelines, but rather admiration.
His admirers respond to criticism of Mourinho’s sporting record by pointing out that the “Special One” has brought an international title to Rome again after 50 years. However, it was the Cup in the Conference League, the least valuable UEFA competition in terms of sport, in which Roma also prevailed against clubs that mostly had a significantly lower budget.
800 million investment: not enough for “The Special One”
The Friedkin family has pumped around 800 million euros into the club in recent years, and the team is the fourth most expensive in Serie A. Nevertheless, after defeats, Mourinho constantly complained about the players that were supposedly too bad and too few. The club management had patience with Jammer-José for a surprisingly long time.
De Rossi now has the goal of finishing fourth and thus qualifying for the Champions League. “I wouldn’t have taken over the team if I thought it was mediocre. I think it’s strong”says the new coach, with a swipe at Mourinho.
De Rossi wants a radical change in football
In terms of football, De Rossi obviously wants a radical change. He said during his inaugural press conference that he was inspired to take up coaching by his former bosses Luciano Spalletti and Luis Enrique. Like them, De Rossi said, as a coach he also wants to play successful and beautiful football. As a first step, he indicated a change in defense from a three-man to a four-man chain.
De Rossi now cycles less. He wants to be authentic, in all its facets. First and foremost on the pitch. “I’m the boss, but in the dressing room I make no secret of the fact that there is familiarity with many of the players and that I have liked Lorenzo Pellegrini and Bryan Cristante for a long time.”, explains the new Roma coach. He doesn’t want to pretend anything about the surroundings either. “Some people advised me not to drive up in my car for image reasons”says De Rossi. He still came to the training center a few kilometers outside the city in a Lamborghini.