September 18 – Daniel de Rossi, the local hero who was brought in to change his boyhood club’s fortunes, has been sacked after just four games as Roma coach.
In a statement, Roma said that the former Italy midfielder “has been relieved of his duties” after just eight months in charge following the dismissal of Jose Mourinho.
“The club’s decision is made in the best interests of the team, to get back on the desired path as soon as possible at a time when the season is still in its early stages,” Roma added.
De Rossi, a World Cup winner with Italy in 2006, was dismissed with Roma 16th in Serie A with three points after four matches. The sudden sacking comes after Roma drew 1-1 at Genoa on Sunday, throwing away what would have been a first win of the campaign in the final seconds of the match.
De Rossi is a Roma idol who won two Italian Cups before finishing his career at Boca Juniors in Argentina in early 2020. The former Roma captain was hired in January to replace Mourinho and impressed so much during the second half of last season that he was given a contract extension in June through 2026-27.
Roma’s American owners have often made surprising decisions and this is surely up there with the most premature.
De Rossi’s tenure at Roma started superbly. In his first 11 league matches, Roma lost just once, picking up 26 points from a possible 33. That run took them from ninth to fifth in the table. They also reached the semi-finals of the Europa League, being knocked out by Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen. A sixth-place finish last season saw them qualify again for this season’s Europa League.
One possible replacement could be former Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri, who was fired for his ugly outburst toward the referees in the Italian Cup final in May.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734894919labto1734894919ofdlr1734894919owedi1734894919sni@w1734894919ahsra1734894919w.wer1734894919dna1734894919