Jose Mourinho apologises to Renato Sanches after Bologna 2-0 Roma | OneFootball

Highlights

Renato Sanches was left bemused after being substituted by José Mourinho despite being on the pitch for less than 20 minutes during AS Roma's 2-0 defeat at Bologna.

Mourinho's side found themselves a goal behind at the half-time break after defensive midfielder - Nikola Moro - broke the deadlock in the 37th minute. The visitors then made a substitution just after half-time that saw Sanches replace Leonardo Spinazzola. The midfielder is currently on loan at the Italian club from Paris Saint-Germain after game time proved to be hard to come by in the French capital.

Shortly after he entered the fray, the 26-year-old was unable to prevent his side from falling further behind as Rasmus Kristensen - on loan from Leeds United - put the ball into his own net to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

With the game still not going in Roma's favour, Mourinho decided to take Sanches back off the pitch to be replaced by a striker - in the form of Sardar Azmoun - and the Portuguese midfielder was visibly confused at the decision. He had spent only 18 minutes on the field and was given very little chance to make his mark on the game with the entire team struggling to perform.

The manager didn't even look in the direction of Sanches as he passed him in the dug-out, but later addressed the incident after the game.

José Mourinho apologises to Sanches

The boss admitted it wasn't an easy decision to make

Speaking after the loss, Mourinho told DAZN (per TMW) that it's a situation he has experienced before in his long career, but that doesn't make it an easier call to make. He said:

To be given an apology by 'The Special One' proves that there was cause for Sanches to be hard done by as Mourinho is not someone that backs down easily. The acknowledgment of the situation will potentially help prevent the player's confidence from dropping. It hasn't been an easy time for Sanches since moving to Rome as injury issues have held him back slightly and Mourinho tends to rely upon others ahead of him.

Romelu Lukaku and Paulo Dybala - Roma's star forwards - were absent and Mourinho was quick to mention this: “Without Paulo Dybala there is no class, without Romelu there is no physicality. The people on the pitch wanted to do better and give more.”

Renato Sanches' next step

The midfielder may struggle to recover his floundering career in Italy

During the 2023/24 campaign, the former Benfica wonderkid has made the majority of his appearances in the Europa League, making five appearances out of six group games. He has only managed to get on the pitch four times in Serie A, including this 18-minute cameo.

It is hard to see a world in which Roma make the loan deal permanent unless there is a miraculous turnaround in fortunes for the ex-Bayern Munich man. PSG's midfield has also moved on without him at the club, so a future in Paris also looks very unlikely at the current moment.