Gianluca Mancini previews Derby della Capitale, discusses De Rossi, Mourinho dismissals and more | OneFootball

Roma defender Gianluca Mancini released a lengthy interview to Il Tempo in view of the upcoming Derby della Capitale.

In the brand new interview for the Roman newspaper, Mancini discussed various topics, touching on the exits of Daniele De Rossi and Jose Mourinho.

“The derby? It’s a special match. There isn’t a different approach for each derby, but it’s a special week, you can feel it right away from training, it’s in your thoughts from when you wake up until you go to bed.”

“During the day you think ‘I have to be careful, there’s the derby’. The approach to the match gives you energy and the desire to do well.”

“Whistles against me? If there are whistles, it will be normal. When you are on the pitch you don’t think about it. Even in the previous derbies there was a bit of hard feelings towards me, I don’t mind it. In fact, it makes me more focused.”

“Mourinho? His dismissal came at a delicate moment. We had gone out in the Coppa Italia with Lazio, then there was the defeat with Milan. We were coming from a period of emergency, I was hurt but I played because Smalling was injured and N’Dicka was in the Africa Cup.”

“Mourinho’s dismissal was unexpected. One morning I went to Trigoria and they told us that he was no longer our coach. I waited until the last moment to say goodbye because I couldn’t leave.”

“It was a rather cold goodbye, we were both very shaken. But I hugged him, I thanked him for those two and a half years that gave me a splendid person and coach. Not even in my childhood dreams could I have imagined being coached by a legend like him.”

“Should Mourinho have stayed after the final in Budapest? I don’t know. At the start of the season I saw him motivated and calm. Then now he said he regretted staying, maybe with a cool head, thinking back to everything that happened. But in those first six months everything seemed normal, even if he wasn’t the usual Mourinho.”

“De Rossi? From when he arrived in January until the Leverkusen match we pushed hard. In three months we made an important journey, losing only to Inter and trying to chase after fifth place which would have been worth the Champions League. After Leverkusen the world fell on us, because we could have made another final in three years.”

“After Leverkusen we were all down, people struggled to shower, to leave the stadium. I was the last to leave with Pellegrini, the coach and Spinazzola. We got to the end of the season a bit limping, we had run out of gas.”

“This year we started again with preseason, with new young and strong players, we changed a lot. With De Rossi there was a three-year project and seeing him go after four matchdays was traumatizing for me, for the team, for the group, for the players who had come because he was the coach.”

“There were some corporate decisions that we footballers don’t get into, because, it seems like a cliché, but footballers are footballers, the decisions are made by the presidents. That day was a truly sad day, traumatic for the group.”

“With De Rossi you could see the group growing, the players arriving happy and enthusiastic and De Rossi was fired up for the work that awaited him. Honestly I didn’t notice any friction between the coach and Souloukou, when two people are in conflict it is noticeable, but nothing seemed to lead to such an abrupt dismissal.”

“Juric? We started well by winning the first games. Juric arrived and, as he has said many times, and it’s the truth, he asked us how we were and we, frank and sincere, said ‘bad’, we were disappointed and he told us: “I’m pleased with your sincerity”. He presented himself well, he tried to cheer us up by putting his way of playing into practice with a team that in my opinion was not ready for this tactical upheaval.”

“When saying goodbye after the last game with Bologna he confided in me: ‘maybe I could have eased this way of pressing one-on-one.” The team tried to do what he asked of us. They were two months of many lows and few highs that compromised our position in the standings a lot. But there are always six months left to play and we will do it to the maximum to turn it around.”

“Juric’s credo has remained the same. We tried to follow him, but we were not ready for this tactical upheaval. Changing three coaches in the space of eight months with different ideas is difficult. It is not an excuse, it is not an alibi, but it is very difficult.”

“After the defeat against Fiorentina there were some discussions, I won’t hide it. Fiorentina massacred us and when you concede five goals from any team you enter the dressing room and you are a river in flood, you want to knock down walls. But then we all got together and said ‘this is the path that the coach wants to take and let’s go straight’. We really wanted to follow the coach.”

“Leaving Trigoria there were some fans, I stopped and told them the truth. At that moment none of us players were against Juric. But the inconsistency of those weeks made you think you would never get there. When you go home you can’t say ‘well, at Trigoria it went like this and at home I’m happy’. You feel bad, also because there are always fans who follow you, even if things aren’t going well and not being able to repay them makes you feel bad.”

“Ranieri’s arrival? Seeing him open the door and enter the locker room made me sigh with relief, it brought serenity on a tactical and technical level. The defeats against Napoli and Atalanta gave us awareness. The matches against Tottenham and Braga also brought us that serenity I was talking about and it is an important thing, as is the closeness of the public. Rome is a warm place, 60-70% of home victories come from the fans, hearing the fans cheering against us is not easy.”

“It is clear that the older guys like me, Bryan [Cristante] and Lorenzo [Pellegrini] experience things differently because we feel more responsible. We knew that the results were bad and that the fans were free to protest. If Bryan and Lorenzo will leave I don’t know, I think about myself. I can say that they are more serene as well as the whole team. We are very good friends, I don’t hide it, I love them with all my heart. I hope with all my heart that things improve for everyone.”

“Lorenzo is always an example in training, even if he is playing less, he always trains at his best and with a smile to make things difficult for the coach. He is ready to fight for his favorite team that he cares about a lot, he will get angry but it is the truth.”

“Hummels? I call him the professor. We are a few years apart, while I was camping in the summer he was playing the World Cup final in 2014. On the pitch he can read the opponent like few other defenders. Against Tottenham he made a slide tackle that I would never have thought of doing, in fact maybe if I try they will call six penalties against me (laughs). He was calm, it was a clean intervention. I turned around and told him ‘you’re crazy’. He laughed”

“Spalletti and Italy? After the Euros we never spoke again. I will always thank him for the opportunity to have participated in the Euros even if they didn’t go well. He was always frank with me and many times even if he hadn’t called me up he would call me if there was a need and I always gave my availability. The national team is every child’s dream. Let’s see what happens, he always said he didn’t want to close the doors to anyone.”

“Dybala? Paulo never told us he wanted to leave. It was important that he stayed in the summer, we were very happy. I simply think he is physically well now, it is right that when he is hurt he does not play. I hope he continues to help us win games by doing extraordinary things like the goal at San Siro.”

“Friedkin? The owners care about Roma, the facts show it. In the summer they made a great acquisition campaign with important young players who are the basis for the future.”

“They are present, when they come they talk to us players. To get to win a Scudetto you need to fight, it’s not as easy as saying it. You have to build a strong mentality, not with words, but with facts. With Mourinho we did it in Europe with the two finals and the Conference League title that made us a solid reality on the international stage.”

“Winning that cup was not easy at all, and unfortunately Budapest prevented us from having that push to get to play for the Scudetto. Winning gives you awareness, as is happening for Atalanta after the Europa League. In the cups we played wonderful games, where you said ‘today Roma wins, there’s no one left to beat’ and we always got to the end. If we had won in Budapest we would have had that hunger to fight for the Scudetto.”

“Will I retire at Roma? I don’t think about it. I live day by day, following the path I’ve taken since I arrived, I’m grateful to the fans who support me, I see that they love me. My way of doing things is genuine both on and off the pitch, I always try to give my best for this shirt and for these people. They always give me something extra to do well. My family and I love this city and I’m happy here. I have two more years on my contract and I want to enjoy every moment hoping that things can improve.”

“Napoli? There is nothing true about these rumors. My agent never told me anything and he knows what I think.”