Roma to begin Pietralata stadium construction in 2027 with €1 billion Friedkin investment

José Mourinho has opened up about his relationship with Roma and the painful end to his time at the club, describing a connection with the fanbase that transcended football. Speaking to Corriere dello Sport, Mourinho recalled his arrival in the capital with characteristic candour. "The fans were special with me," he said. "I always tell the story that on the day I arrived in Rome and got off the plane, there were a thousand people. But I had done nothing. I hadn't won anything for these people and I asked myself why. This had a big impact. I didn't deserve it, but this is Rome—you understand it afterwards." Mourinho emphasised the depth of his commitment to the club and its supporters. "A crazy connection was created," he explained. "They understood that I never worried about my image, my relationships with the ownership, Italian football politics, or the press. For me, only Roma and the Romanisti existed. I fought for them, I gave everything of myself and in return I received their love." He highlighted Roma's Europa Conference League victory as a watershed moment, noting that for a club without frequent major honours, such a triumph carried immense significance. "The fans showed a love that touches you for the club. I made mistakes, I lost matches, I got things wrong sometimes, but they always understood that I was fighting for them." The narrative darkened when Mourinho addressed the Europa League final in Budapest and its aftermath. "The end of the Europa League was the highest point of this connection with the fans. Obviously it ended badly for me," he said. "I paid for the relationship with the ownership, which had a profile and approach different from mine over what happened in the final. I was already dead, and after a few months I left." The interview underscores how deeply the wound of his departure runs, and his place in supporters' affection remains secure, though Mourinho himself resists comparisons with Roma's legendary figures.

José Mourinho will return to the Olimpico as an opponent for the first time since his dismissal from Roma, with the reunion set for next week. The Real Madrid manager, now in his current role, gave an interview to Corriere dello Sport in which he reflected on his bond with Roma and what to expect when he faces his former club. Mourinho emphasized the pain of his Roma exit but said he has maintained respect for the institution. "You know how much it hurt me to leave Roma, but there is not a word from me against the club or the ownership," he said. "I leave cleanly. It may not seem like it, but I am a very educated person and I leave with the feeling that Roma will always be my home. And that has been the case at Madrid too." He compared his connection to Roma with few others in his managerial career, drawing parallels only with his earlier relationship at the club. "The day I arrived I saw 1,000 people. I didn't understand why—I hadn't done anything yet. I didn't think I deserved it, but that is Rome and I understood it afterwards. Our relationship is special because they understood that I didn't care about my image or my relationships with Italian football politics, the press or the ownership. I only cared about what was good for Roma and the Romanisti. I fought for them, I gave everything." Mourinho credited the 2023 UEFA Europa Conference League triumph—Roma's first major trophy in two decades—as the peak of his connection with the supporters. "We won a cup that means a lot to a club that hadn't won so much," he said. He also referenced the aftermath of the final in Budapest and subsequent disciplinary action from UEFA, noting: "When the final ended, I go on holiday and when I return I'm already dead for what UEFA made me pay. What happened to Taylor at the airport is not my responsibility—it's the insults in the garage and I should only pay for that. And I paid for this in the relationship with Roma's ownership since they had a different approach. At that moment I was already out." When asked whether he felt the same affection for Francesco Totti, Mourinho said: "Francesco is untouchable. I will always be behind him. Roma has a beautiful history with historic players; I also think of Bruno Conti, whom I love." On the atmosphere he expects to encounter, Mourinho said: "I don't expect anything. I expect only respect and that's it. I haven't yet started preparing for that match—neither as a manager nor as an old boy coming home. I haven't thought about this yet. I have to defend myself and prepare to do my job well, and to do that I need to try to forget where I am and against whom I'm playing. I did this with Inter or Chelsea. At Roma it never happened to me, and I must say it will be different. I will take the road that leads to the Olimpico as an opponent. It will be the first time I go there without the passion of the Romanisti fans. And I will have to prepare my players for this."

Italy's highest court has ruled in favour of AS Roma in a long-running legal dispute with Gianluca Petrachi, the club's former sporting director during the 2019-20 season. The Cassation confirmed the validity of Petrachi's dismissal, which took place despite him having two years remaining on his contract. Petrachi was fired following a message he sent to then-owner James Pallotta. In his message, Petrachi called Pallotta "a small man" and expressed the hope that he had "not let him steal money, as so many had done". The court found that Petrachi's message contained "extremely serious insults" that alluded "to serious crimes committed by an entire management". The legal case has now concluded with Roma's victory.