Satisfied with the performance of the players, not with the result of the match

Recently, Roma drew 1-1 away to Torino in the 5th round of Serie A. Roma manager Jose Mourinho was interviewed after the game.

Roma’s attacking line was a bit dead in the first half today, and only got better in the second half, what went wrong?

It’s difficult to play against a club of Torino’s type, they are excellent in terms of fitness and intensity, it was a tough game and in the end we conceded on a set piece defense. From my point of view, Roma didn’t play badly, and it wasn’t easy against Torino, whose confrontational style makes them unique in Serie A. I now promise that I will never criticize the Stadio Olimpico (Roma’s home stadium) again, which is a perfect runway compared to today’s grass.

A few weeks ago players like Paredes couldn’t reach 15 minutes of playing time, and today Ndika and Christensen played positively, it was a good game in my opinion, but there’s still room for improvement, and we could have done better than conceding a goal at the last minute to make us feel like we’ve lost two points. I’m sorry for the result, but I’m very happy with the individual progress of the players.

Lukaku has been playing very well recently, are you happy with him?

He’s a great player. But other clubs have other great strikers too. I’m happy with him, Belotti and Azmon. I like Azmoun a lot, but he’s still in a very difficult phase due to physical problems and he still needs to work hard.

Roma have conceded a lot of goals in the new season, for what reason?

If you look at the Roma squad, you’ll see that 2 and a half of the 5 defenders who have started in the backline this season are new, half of which is Diego Llorente, who joined in the winter window in January this year, and who will only be playing for Roma for about 10 matches. Now we don’t have Ibane (transfer) S and Smalling (injury). Patricio wasn’t at his best before, and he’s been adjusting in previous games. I’m sure we’ll get back to not conceding again in the following games. People may always remember Ibanez for his mistakes, but he’s also a strong player and Smalling is vital for us.

Of course we’re not happy with where we are on the league table, but it’s not the real league table yet, and I guarantee that come January, Roma won’t be in the same position as they are now.