Damiano and Daniele, what strange twins. «He is the young coach of the RomaI the young coach of the city of Verona». That’s a nice comparison Thomas find between him and From Rossi, nine years younger, a companion of the Giallorossi seasons who fate meets on Saturday in Roma-Hellas Verona, the Latin team against the one with the somewhat Greek name. After all, Damiano and Daniele are two classics, in their own way.
Tommasi, what effect does it have on you?
«As a Veronese and Venetian, I would have preferred them to send Mourinho away a week later. So, instead, Verona will find opponents who want to demonstrate something special, I imagine them fully loaded: some for the old manager, many for the new one, all for themselves. It will be an additional problem for us, and there was already no shortage of them.”
It has always been said: De Rossi will one day coach Roma. And that day he arrived. One day right?
«Great players who become coaches must be able to erase what they have been on the pitch. Liedholm, Capello, Zoff, Vialli, among many, succeeded. Now it’s Daniele’s turn: a symbol of Rome, called to make people forget that he was one.”
Is everything so rigid? That collective forgetfulness will be impossible.
«But a coach lives by results, not by stories. He lives by choices, and it is on that ground that he is measured. Then, it is clear that the weight of the character can make the difference. It was like this even when De Rossi was a true leader, in the locker room and not just on the pitch. And he was also the same for the coaches, at Roma and in the national team.”
Damiano Tommasi, today mayor of Verona
What could be the future of Captain Future?
«How I made fun of him! I met him when I was president of the Footballers’ Association, and I told him: “Hey, it turns out that Captain Future risks stopping playing before Totti!”. Well, perhaps Daniele as a footballer remained Captain Future for too long, but it wasn’t up to him. The real captain only did it for a couple of seasons.”
Has the figure of Totti weighed on him, and will it always weigh on him?
«I have never met a more fiery Roma fan than Daniele. Even more than Francesco. Having said that, the coach is on the bench and in charge of the team, not the fan.”
Don’t you think that Daniele risks burning himself?
«Not this, but he certainly arrived in a particular context, as a remedy. It was perhaps expected that Daniele would begin this experience differently, although it was written in destiny. I think of Xavi for Barcelona, and others. But getting burned, I would say no. We cannot say that Pippo Inzaghi or Gattuso were burned at Milan, they are stages of a journey. Montella came from Roma’s youth team, yet he did very well, even beyond expectations. And look how Palladino is working. Experience has become something rapid, it accumulates more quickly than in the past. Daniele’s return to Roma is news that raises many things, and cannot leave anyone indifferent.”
Mourinho and Rome, love and disaffection: the magician and the city slaves of the past by Gabriele Romagnoli 16 January 2024
What is leadership?
«I would say a shape, a rather delicate place. You have to have it inside, it’s almost a natural instinct and you can’t learn it. But it is not a credit to be spent endlessly: you are always weighed on the things done. What we do, not just how or who we are.”
Daniele De Rossi has sometimes been compared to his Verona.
«True, in a couple of circumstances. Now we approach him as an adversary, and I would say unfortunately.”
Who is Daniele for you?
«The ideal teammate: even the opponents thought so. A struggling midfielder with the feet of a champion and the head of a leader. A thoughtful warrior, a generous one. A leader who already had a sculpted personality at the age of twenty. A friend. A man who is guided by passion, but not blinded. And then, he always tells the truth.”
Is coaching a city different from coaching a team?
«Obviously yes, but in both cases the group is worth more than anything. The team of a municipal council thrives on relationships, harmony, and must be co-responsible for efficiency. The game plan counts, you have to know how to move together in the same direction.”
Mourinho, goodbye Rome. De Rossi the totem for survival by Paolo Condò 17 January 2024
You have been sitting on the bench of the civic building for a year and a half now: can we make an initial assessment? The first round is almost over…
«For the meantime, I’ll say right away that I would do it again. This very important, delicate and formative experience counts for me now, and I hope for Verona, and will count for whatever happens to me in the future. I say this as a person and as a citizen. My city plays a kind of Champions League, it is a place of great European importance. It has everything, it’s very challenging. I couldn’t ask for more.”
For Hellas, however, something more could perhaps be asked for.
«Last championship, with that unexpected salvation at a certain point, conditions us: it is the incentive to not take anything for granted, but it is also the obligation to react to adverse results before it is too late. The winter market is experiencing departures, like never before. This doesn’t help. The transfers of some important elements are disorienting. As for the financial problems, they also existed years ago and have been overcome. These are difficult situations, but they increase the adrenaline. In the away match against Inter, the team reacted very well even if the result didn’t come. From today, distractions are no longer allowed.”
Starting with Daniele De Rossi to look into the eyes.
«A Roma fan who would throw himself into the fire for that shirt».
2024-01-18 23:00:00
#Damiano #Tommasi #Rossi #thoughtful #warrior #tells #truth #Football
