José Mourinho is eager to win the European Conference League, where Roma are considered the frontrunners by the bookmakers. The Giallorossi are in the midst of a 14-year drought. The coach wants to end it and lift his 25th trophy.
The new competition has just been established, so Mourinho will have the opportunity to be the first-ever gaffer to win the top four continental cups. It has been rare for Roma bosses to be successful in their first year at the helm, even for the great ones. Nils Liedholm, Fabio Capello and Luciano Spalletti did not manage. The select club comprises just Luis Mirò, Helenio Herrera and Ottavio Bianchi, La Gazzetta dello Sport indicates.
Mourinho tapped into his spiritual side in a conversation with José Tolentino de Mondonça, the Vatican archivist and head librarian, as L’Osservatore Romano transcribed: “I can perceive my evolution as a man because, for many years, I just wanted to win for myself. Now I want to do it, with the same or perhaps even more intensity, for players who have never done it to help them. I pay much more attention to the fans being happy because the team is successful. The fire is still there, but I am less self-absorbed.”
“Errors are cruel. If I make some, I get fired, while footballers get benched. I have managed the best sides in the world. I prevailed in Portugal, England, Italy and Spain. The only thing I have not done yet is to helm a national team.”