Some people are incapable of changing. Roma boss Jose Mourinho has a unique character, but his frequent outbursts often do Giallorossi more harm than good.
The latest example of his flamboyant nature came in Sunday’s heated home contest against Atalanta. Roma fought back from an early deficit to hold Gian Piero Gasperini’s side to a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Olimpico. However, the result failed to satisfy Roma’s appetites.
With Lazio beating Udinese later in the day, Roma slipped to eighth in the standings, wasting a golden opportunity to whittle down the gap on fourth-placed Fiorentina. La Viola’s 1-0 defeat at Sassuolo offered Mourinho’s troops a chance to reignite their top-four hopes.
Yet, after drawing with Atalanta, they could only close the distance to four points. To make things worse, Lazio leapfrogged them into seventh. It was the fourth time in ten home matches in Serie A this season that Roma failed to take three points.
Despite showing a late ambition to win the game, they hardly deserved a victory. That was perhaps the main reason behind Mourinho’s theatrics in stoppage time. The Special One lost his temper as he threw a wave of insults toward referee Gianluca Aureliano.
It was an innocuous situation. Isak Hien brought Romelu Lukaku to the ground near the halfway line. Since it was a 50-50 challenge, Aureliano waved play on. And then, it happened. Mourinho almost stormed into the pitch as he lashed out at the referee for refusing to award a foul for Roma.
While Aureliano didn’t instantly show Mourinho a red, he eventually sent him off, taking his tally to two in the 2023/24 Serie A campaign. While the Special One ‘behaved well’ in recent months, his ridiculous expansions begin to form an ominous pattern.
Let’s take a trip down memory lane.
Back in October, referee Giovanni Ayroldi gave Mourinho his marching orders as Roma defeated Monza at the Olimpico. His men were 1-0 up against a 10-man opposition, yet the 60-year-old couldn’t help himself. He made a ‘crying’ gesture toward Raffaele Palladino, which earned him a stoppage-time dismissal.
It’s only the tip of the iceberg. Mourinho’s scandalous trend of picking up bookings for fun was one of the highlights of Roma’s disappointing 2022/23 Serie A season. You don’t need to look beyond the fact his four-red-card haul was a league-high among players and managers last term to understand the gravity of the problem.
One could say the officials react differently to Mourinho. He has complained about the ‘double standards,’ trying to make himself look like a victim, a role that doesn’t suit him. It’s no secret that he often resorts to unconventional tricks to protect his teams.
The Roma boss is a mind-game specialist. That’s how he built his reputation as one of the world’s best coaches. Everything he does serves a greater purpose, or at least that’s how Mourinho perceives his actions. But it’s hardly a valid excuse for such an experienced and decorated coach.
 |
Follow us on Google News for more updates on Serie A and Italian football |