Rome: we are moving towards the renewal of El Shaarawy

The player is considered strategic by coach and management. Also for his impeccable attitude

If Stephan El Shaarawy and Roma continue to follow the same path, the credit will go above all to the Pharaoh.

Because thanks to the performances and commitment shown on the field in recent months, the number 92 is convincing the Friedkins and the Giallorossi general manager Tiago Pinto to exercise the option – present on the attacker’s contract – which would allow the Roma management to automatically renew understanding with the player. The cue is in fact in the hands of Roma who, until May, have time to decide whether or not to extend the marriage with the offensive full-back who arrived in the capital (for the first time) in 2016 and brought back to Trigoria by Pinto at the beginning of the his mandate.

Sensations

The parties have not yet begun the confrontation to put the new agreement on paper, but in recent weeks Fulvio Bernardini is filled with optimism regarding the renewal issue. José Mourinho dotes on the player, who has become to all intents and purposes the real extra weapon of the Special One. Always being ready when called upon, respecting the choices of the coach – who reluctantly is often forced to exclude him from the starting eleven due to balance issues – and changing roles if necessary, El Shaarawy is also considered a valuable element by the top management of the club. Who are now really thinking of renewing the agreement with the thirty-year-old.

High performance

The qualities of the class of ’92 in Trigoria have never been in question. Rather, some doubts related to the continuity of performance and the physical fitness of the player who, in the past, had to deal with various muscle problems, made the Roma management proceed with caution on the renewal issue. However, since the beginning of the season, El Shaarawy has shown an important improvement from every point of view. Despite starting behind the “Fab four” (Pellegrini, Dybala, Zaniolo and Abraham) in Mourinho’s hierarchies, Stephan has already totaled 27 appearances – 18 as a starter – and 4 goals, accumulating over 1300 minutes on the pitch. On the other hand, there are 5 races missed due to physical problems (all in September).

The praise

Mourinho’s words also underlined El Shaarawy’s importance in the Giallorossi tactical chessboard. After beating Real Sociedad 2-0 (the number 92 opened the scoring), the Portuguese spent important words on his forward: “Stephan sometimes stays on the bench because I need forward solutions, he can’t getting too tired, it’s hard to ask him so many things. His mentality is fantastic for us.” The Special One had publicly praised the Pharaoh even after the victory over Juventus, when El Shaarawy had been on the bench for the whole game: “It was a group victory but I don’t want to let the fact that El Shaarawy was sacrificed go by. With Tammy in this condition and without Solbakken, if Stephan had started there wouldn’t have been a player on the bench able to change pace. Fortunately the game went in the right direction and bringing him on wasn’t necessary.”

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