Mourinho: I told my Roma players I felt ashamed of being their coach

By Sports Desk August 27, 2022

Jose Mourinho told his Roma players he "felt ashamed of being their coach" before they recovered from a goal down at half-time to draw 1-1 against Juventus.

Roma had won their opening two Serie A games without conceding but fell behind to a Dusan Vlahovic free-kick inside 76 seconds at the Allianz Stadium on Saturday.

Juve had a second goal through Manuel Locatelli ruled out for a Vlahovic handball in the build-up in a half the home side dominated, outshooting their opponents 10 to three.

Mourinho responded by replacing Gianluca Mancini and Leonardo Spinazzola with Stephan El Shaarawy and Nicola Zalewski at the break, and Roma improved in the second half.

The visitors found a way through from one of their three efforts on target in the second period, with Tammy Abraham turning in former Juve player Paulo Dybala's acrobatic pass.

While his side's unbeaten start to the season remains intact with a credible point in Turin, however, Mourinho accepted Roma were rather fortunate.

Asked what he said at half-time, Mourinho told DAZN: "I told the team I was ashamed of them. I felt ashamed of being their coach.

"The game changed, but let's not talk about tactics; let's instead talk about attitude. We can't get where we want with this attitude.

"I told [assistant coach Salvatore] Foti to pray that it finished only 1-0. That would have been a good result after that first-half performance.

"I told them to take advantage of the luck we had, knowing the game could have been over at that point. Every now and then, you are dominated but you have to manage it better.

"I had a bench with very few offensive solutions, especially compared to [Massimiliano] Allegri. But after analysing the second half, we deserved to win that 1-0."

 

The goal Roma conceded came from Vlahovic's first touch and was Juve's first direct free-kick goal in the league since Cristiano Ronaldo scored against Torino in July 2020.

It ended the Giallorossi's four-game run without conceding in all competitions, but the home team were unable to hold on and now have just one win from three games this term.

And Juve head coach Allegri recognised his side could have no complaints with the full-time scoreline after they failed to finish off Roma when on top in the first half.

"Jose's always smart and sharp in the way he reads games," Allegri said of his opposite number. "If you don't kill off the game, you always leave the possibility of an equaliser.

"We were tired after a strong first half and probably should have focused on passing the ball around to slow things down.

"That's something we need to learn. You cannot expect a team to dominate the match for the full 90 minutes."

Juve, who had beaten Roma in 10 of their 11 previous league games at the Allianz Stadium, went with a 4-2-3-1 formation, but Allegri hinted he is open to change once at full strength.

"First of all we need to focus on getting Federico Chiesa, Paul Pogba and Angel Di Maria back," Allegri said when asked about his set-up. 

"They all have technique and a change of pace. Having changes available from the bench makes a big difference."

Related items

  • Uli Hoeness says ‘probably impossible’ to lure Xabi Alonso from Bayer in summer Uli Hoeness says ‘probably impossible’ to lure Xabi Alonso from Bayer in summer

    Reported Liverpool managerial target Xabi Alonso is unlikely to jump ship from Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen, according to Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness.

    The 42-year-old, who lifted the Champions League trophy in 2005 during his debut season with the Reds, has been a widely touted as a likely replacement for Jurgen Klopp, who in January announced he will stand down at the end of the season after eight-and-a-half decorated years at Anfield.

    Bayern are thought to be one of the other clubs courting the Spaniard’s services, but Hoeness was highly pessimistic about anyone’s chances of luring Alonso away from Leverkusen.

    He told Das Erste: “We’ll have to see if we can do it this year.

    “It will be difficult, if not probably impossible. (Alonso) is more inclined to stay at Bayer Leverkusen in view of their current successes, because he would not want to leave them behind.

    “Let’s say if he had two or three more years of success, it would probably be easier to bring him out of there.”

    Alonso’s men are on course to secure the first Bundesliga title in the club’s history, sitting 10 points clear of Bayern Munich in second.

    In February, their 2-1 victory over Mainz to make it 33 games unbeaten broke the German record for consecutive competitive matches without a loss,  surpassing Hansi Flick’s Bayern Munich team of 2020 and 2021.

    They have since extended that run to 38 fixtures, most recently with a 3-2 victory over Freiburg before the international break.

  • Willie Kirk sacked as Leicester boss after position became ‘untenable’ Willie Kirk sacked as Leicester boss after position became ‘untenable’

    Leicester have sacked women’s first-team boss Willie Kirk after the club determined the Scot had “breached the team’s code of conduct to a degree that makes his position untenable”.

    The 45-year-old last took charge of the Foxes when they lost 4-0 in the Women’s Super League to Chelsea on March 3, before the club subsequently announced that Kirk was “assisting the club with an internal process”  and would not be on the touchline for their March 9 FA Cup quarter-final.

    Kirk’s then-assistant Jennifer Foster, supported by first team coach Stephen Kirby, oversaw that 2-0 victory and have remained at the helm since.

    They will remain in charge until Kirk’s permanent successor is named.

    A Leicester statement read: “Leicester City Football Club can confirm that Willie Kirk has been dismissed from his position as LCFC Women Manager.

    “Following an extensive internal disciplinary process and respecting the Club’s obligations to individual privacy, Willie was determined to have breached the team’s code of conduct to a degree that makes his position untenable.

    “Established and implemented ahead of the start of the current season, the code forms part of the Club’s ongoing commitment to professionalising the women’s game since the takeover of LCFC Women in 2020, promoting a performance-led culture among players, coaches and technical staff.

    “First Team responsibilities for LCFC Women will continue to be led by Jennifer Foster, supported by Stephen Kirby, while the Club begins the process of appointing a new permanent manager.”

  • Lembikisa, Hector included in Concacaf Nations League Finals Best XI Lembikisa, Hector included in Concacaf Nations League Finals Best XI

    Reggae Boyz defenders Michael Hector and Dexter Lembikisa were both selected to the Nations League Finals Best XI by Concacaf on Wednesday.

    Hector was a big reason why Jamaica were seconds away from defeating the U.S. in the semifinals. The center back was immense for the Reggae Boyz and amassed seven clearances in the two games, to go along with a steal and an assist.

    Lembikisa picked the right time to score his first goal with Jamaica with a powerful left-footed finish in the 1-0 Third-Place win versus Panama. He also had seven clearances.

    The full team is as follows: GK Matt Turner (USA), Defenders: Antonee Robinson (USA), Michael Hector (Jamaica), Cesar Montes (Mexico), Dexter Lembikisa (Jamaica), Midfielders: Edson Alvarez (Mexico), Tyler Adams (USA), Weston McKinnie (USA), Forwards: Gio Reyna (USA), Christian Pulisic (USA), Haji Wright (USA).

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.