1 win in 9 games: Mourinho goes all-in on Europa League

Jose Mourinho's Roma, as they have been known since the Portuguese arrived at the Olimpico, have put all their chips on the Europa League. And not now that they are in the final. They have done so since the quarter-finals, a round in which they have not won a single match in Serie A and only one in the nine official matches played.

On 20th April, the 'Gioallorossi' won the second leg of the quarter-final against Feyenoord with a late goal from Dybala to force extra time. That extra time ended in a 4-1 win for the home side and, since then, the Italians have gone winless in 8 of their 9 matches.

Before Juventus' second suspension, Mourinho was aware of the great competition in Serie A to get into the Champions League qualification places. And he must have thought it was easier to reach the top continental competition via the second one.

Between the second leg against Feyenoord and the first leg of the semi-final against Bayer Leverkusen, Roma had two draws and two defeats in Italy. They lost 3-1 to Atalanta, drew 1-1 with Milan and Monza and lost 2-0 to Inter. These were not easy opponents, but their run of form would continue thereafter against lower level opposition.

The Romans beat the Germans in the first leg of the semi-final and, before the 0-0 draw in the second leg that took them to the final, they also played out a goalless draw against Bologna. After the semi-finals, they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Salernitana and a 2-1 defeat in Florence.

Roma can no longer reach 4th place, held by Milan after the 10 points taken from Juve, but they can lose 6th place to the 'Vecchia Signora'. They have 60 points and, with only one game left to play, they are one point behind Atalanta and one ahead of the Turin side, although all this will come to nothing if, as Mou wishes, his team wins the Europa League against Sevilla and gets direct qualification for the Champions League.

 

May 31, 2023