Fresh from his UEFA Super Cup win against Eintracht Frankfurt, Carlo Ancelotti is looking forward to the beginning of the new European season, especially the Serie A. He believes that his former club Roma have strengthened leaps and bounds under José Mourinho this summer transfer window. Paulo Dybala, Georginio Wijnaldum and Nemanja Matic are among the high-profile names to arrive in the Italian capital.
The legendary tactician spoke to the microphones of Radio Radio (via Calciomercato), letting loose his thoughts on the Giallorossi’s upcoming campaign and his bond with Mourinho.
“I think Roma have strengthened themselves a lot in this window. I am not saying that they will fight for the Scudetto, but they have certainly raised the bar.”
Ancelotti believes Mourinho and co. have enough on their plate already in terms of expectations. He gave his kudos to the Special One for inculcating enthusiasm and vigor into the maroon-red shirt.
“To say that would mean putting even more pressure on an already fiery environment and after the excellent work done by Mourinho. The Portuguese was good both on a technical level, winning the Conference, and from a psychological point of view. He has brought back enthusiasm to the city and to say that Roma will fight for the Scudetto seems to me a way to ruin everything they have done.”
The iconic manager, who astonishingly has won just one Scudetto title in his career – back with Milan in 2003/04, believes the other big guns are a step forward in the Serie A race.
“Roma are there, it seems obvious to me, but we’ll see. However, at the moment Juventus, Inter and Milan seem like a step forward.”
Finally, Ancelotti spoke of his bond with Mourinho.
“Every now and then we talk over the phone, we exchange messages to compliment each other. We are two old men who keep moving forward.”
Ancelotti played for eight seasons in the Giallorossi colors from 1979 to 1987, garnering 17 goals in 227 appearances for the capital club during his stint. He was part of the historic 1982/83 Scudetto-winning Roma team.
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