Roma could be facing a transfer exodus at the end of the season following Jose Mourinho’s outburst in the wake of the Coppa Italia elimination to Inter. After seeing his side thumped by the Nerazzurri 2-0 on Tuesday, the ‘Special One’ had another of his iconic post-match speeches.
Mourinho could not help himself once again as he lashed out at the Roma starters after his team collapsed at the San Siro in midweek. Furious with another underwhelming performance from his man, he even encouraged some of his first-team strugglers to wave goodbye to the Stadio Olimpico in the summer.
“I want to know why, playing face to face with Inter, you screwed up in the first ten minutes!” he said as relayed by Il Corriere dello Sport.
“And then I want to know why, also against Milan, you screwed up in 10 minutes! Everyone, no one excluded! Inter is a super team, you had them in front of you and instead of finding the right motivations, you screwed up! The biggest flaw in a man is a lack of balls, lack of personality.
“Are you afraid of games like this? Then go to Serie C, where you will never find teams champions, the best stadiums or the pressure of great football. You are people without balls.”
Tuesday’s defeat at Inter was just the tip of the iceberg as Roma have so far had a thoroughly disappointing season under Mourinho’s stewardship. Despite finishing top of their Europa Conference League group, the Giallorossi have performed below expectations in Serie A, where they currently languish in seventh.
And with Mourinho growing frustrated with his team’s lack of attitude, some of Roma star players could be shown the door at the end of the season. As per Corriere dello Sport, via Pagine Romaniste, five first-team regulars could be heading towards the summer exit.
Jordan Veretout, Roger Ibanez, Matias Vina, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Nicolo Zaniolo are the quintet of players linked with potential summer departures. It appears that all of them would be allowed to leave Roma when the transfer window reopens for business in July.
While Veretout and Ibanez have fallen out of favour with Mourinho, Vina seems likely to return to the bench once Leonardo Spinazzola comes back from injury. Mkhitaryan’s fractious relationship with his ex-Manchester United boss means Roma are unlikely to hand the Armenian a new deal.
Meanwhile, Zaniolo, who has long been deemed ‘future Roma captain,’ has experienced an uninspiring season so far, losing his status as an indispensable starter. Since his contract runs until summer 2024, Roma could make a substantial profit from offloading their homegrown star in the upcoming transfer window. Man United are said to be keeping close tabs on Zaniolo.