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Davide Zappacosta’s Roma career could be over having barely begun, as the on-loan defender has ruptured his ACL in his knee.
The news was confirmed by the club on Friday after a training session, just days after the right-back returned to the group following a previous injury. Only on loan from Chelsea until January, although the club had the option of extending his stay until the end of the season, Zappacosta’s long-term future is now in serious doubt. If he returns to Chelsea for his recovery - expected to take at least four months - he will leave having only played 12 minutes of Serie A action for Roma. Zappacosta is the latest in a worrying long line of Roma players to suffer ACL injuries in recent years, with Kevin Strootman, Rick Karsdorp and Alessandro Florenzi among the most high-profile names to be affected - while Primavera right-back Devid Bouah suffered a second injury of the sort last month. Fellow right-back Alessandro Florenzi is also at risk of missing Sunday’s clash with Cagliari, with a much less serious injury - a bout of the flu. Best wishes to Davide for a full recovery.
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Edin Dzeko has revealed that Alessandro Florenzi promised him the captain's armband if he stayed at Roma.
Dzeko put an end to months of rumours last week by signing a new three-year contract with Roma, even if it had seemed more likely that he would be leaving this summer. Now, in one of his first interviews since agreeing his renewal, Dzeko has revealed how much his teammates wanted him to stay. "I am happy when other people are happy that I have stayed here with my teammates," the 33-year-old told the AS Roma Match Preview. "I don't want to call them just that, but friends, brothers. "They were always there to stress to me: 'You are not going anywhere, stay here.' "I have a great relationship with everyone, [Lorenzo] Pellegrini and Florenzi told me every day: 'In the end, you will stay here.' "Florenzi told me: 'If you sign I will give you the armband.' He said to me after the signing, 'It's yours', but I told him, 'You are our captain'." Join the Giallorossi Yorkshire fantasy football league before the Serie A season kicks off by following this link!
All the latest Roma transfer updates in one video - including Edin Dzeko, Toby Alderweireld and more.
Paulo Fonseca insisted he had no fears as he was presented to the media on Monday afternoon, with the new head coach making a vow to get Roma back into the Champions League.
Fonseca's first pre-season with Roma gets underway this week, as he prepares for his first taste of coaching in Italy. At his first press conference - in which he made an introduction in Italian, promising to get to grips with the language quickly - he reiterated the level of his motivation to succeed at Roma. "It will not be my Roma, but everyone’s. I am motivated, together with the management and the players, to build an ambitious side that makes our supporters proud," he said. "We are working hard to build a strong team and we are studying our needs. We are pondering the choices in order to bring quality to the team. We made three purchases [with Pau Lopez completing his medical today], we’ll let you know when there’s more. We are carefully considering our choices, to bring quality profiles to reinforce the team. "[James Pallotta] has not set concrete goals, but I am forcing myself to immediately get us back into the Champions League. Another priority is to build a strong and ambitious team. "We always want to win, but we still have to make our supporters proud even when we don’t do so. We’ll get close to the finish line if we can achieve this. I won’t promise anything, but it’s my belief. "I have a two-year contract here with an option for an additional year, but I am convinced that we can win something. It is not a promise but a conviction." When asked for comment over the futures of Nicolo Zaniolo and Edin Dzeko, the Portuguese tactician responded thus: "I will start with Zaniolo: he has great talent and we believe in him. But what I’ll say to him is true to anyone who is part of the current squad - they must demonstrate in training that they deserve to wear this shirt. "I have huge ambition and I think we can do so many things with this team and this talent. The most important thing is the presence of players who want to sacrifice themselves for this shirt and put the interests of the team ahead of their own. "As for Dzeko, I haven’t spoken to him but Gianluca [Petrachi] has had the chance to do so. I want people to stay here who are motivated and happy and want to fight for this club. This is a fundamental condition: I want players dedicated to the cause and willing to pursue the goals of the team." Fonseca also suggested that Alessandro Florenzi and Lorenzo Pellegrini could be the captain and vice-captain for the upcoming season. "Florenzi was the captain of the team and it is a question that we will analyse. The probability that he will continue to be so is very high. "I know these two players well because I have faced them and watched many Roma matches. For me, it is important to get to know them well — not only on the pitch but from a character point of view, getting to know them as men. This isn’t true only for them. "As for their roles, we’ll have to see and analyse things calmly. To close this talk: we often talks about the needs of a team. I will demand something from both my players and the club." Fonseca finished by reaffirming his belief that his project at Roma can be successful. "I am here because I am convinced that I can elevate Roma to the next level. The league is difficult and very tactical, which is one of the reasons why I’m here in Italy. I believe that together we can build something special. "I don’t base my decisions off economic considerations but on how I’m feeling and the sensations I get. After I spoke to Petrachi, I didn’t hesitate. I had no doubts. This is why I’m here and tomorrow I’ll start working because I want to build something special. "Fear is a feeling I don’t know; I’m not afraid. The results are what matters. The manager is the results." Giallorossi Yorkshire looks at how Roma's players have been performing on international duty over the weekend.
Friday 7th June Patrik Schick scored a brace for Czech Republic in their 2-1 comeback win against Bulgaria. After the game, the striker said he felt more involved with the play with the national team than he does at Roma. Aleksandar Kolarov started as part of a back three in Serbia's 5-0 loss to Ukraine, captaining the side. Robin Olsen kept a clean sheet in Sweden's 3-0 win over Malta. It's only his second clean sheet of 2019, and his first since the January Coppa Italia win over third-tier side Virtus Entella. Luca Pellegrini, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Cagliari, played all 90 minutes for Italy in their U20 World Cup quarter-final win over Mali. Saturday 8th June Cengiz Under scored in Turkey's 2-0 win 0ver world champions France. Edin Dzeko captained his country as Bosnia-Herzegovina lost 2-0 to Finland. Teammates Alessandro Florenzi and Kostas Manolas came up against each other as Italy beat Greece 3-0. Lorenzo Pellegrini came on as a substitute for the Azzurri. Sunday 9th June Roma Women captain Elisa Bartoli came on as a half-time sub in Italy's World Cup opener, a 2-1 win over Australia. Italy were losing before she entered the action for her first ever World Cup appearance. Allyson Swaby and Trudi Carter also made their Women's World Cup debuts as Jamaica lost 3-0 to Brazil. Aleksandar Kolarov has claimed that Roma will soon start to feel the void left by Daniele De Rossi when the captain departs.
Roma confirmed earlier this week that De Rossi would not be offered a new contract despite his 18 years of service to the club, a decision which has enraged supporters, who have been protesting outside the club headquarters today. In an interview with DAZN, Kolarov has revealed his thoughts on the situation of his captain. "I consider Daniele a brother," he said. "The first match I played with Roma was in Bergamo against Atalanta. Sometimes before certain matches captains give a speech, but Daniele always does so and when I heard him talk and the emotion he transmitted I thought to myself how good this guy is. "I’ve been through a lot in my career, but I’ve never seen someone so passionate about a club. "I’m a Red Star supporter and didn’t have the good fortune to spend my entire career there because the ambitions were different. He was lucky enough to play for the club he loves. "We often talked in the dressing room about our careers because I'm almost 34 and in July he will be 36; we have our better years behind us. He said he wanted to finish here, but we all saw what happened. I think in 3 or 4 months when the next season starts, everyone will realise what Daniele De Rossi was for Roma." The pair have a good relationship, with De Rossi stepping in to heal the rift between Kolarov and the Giallorossi supporters earlier in the season - after which, it should be noted, the Serbian's performances have vastly improved. Kolarov also reserved words of praise for Alessandro Florenzi, who will be the next Roman to carry on the spirit of the club following De Rossi's exit in the summer. "He was lucky enough to play with Totti and De Rossi and has had excellent examples, but this also involves huge responsibility because we all know how Totti and De Rossi are considered in Rome," explained Kolarov. "He is a smart guy, he will know how to react in the right way." Want more Roma news on your timeline? Like the new Giallorossi Yorkshire Facebook page!
Roma kept the pressure on in the race for a top four place as they won the most difficult of their three remaining games.
Goals from Alessandro Florenzi, who overcame a personal battle with Cristiano Ronaldo, and Edin Dzeko, back to his sharp shooting best, earned the Giallorossi a 2-0 win over Juventus, reducing the gap with Atalanta back to three points. Here's how all the key figures reacted to the match. Claudio Ranieri to Sky Sport Italia “We must continue believing that anything is possible. "It doesn’t depend on us and we know that perfectly well, but we must get to the end of the season with our conscience clear. “Having been in this position already, and as a local and a fan of this club, I’ve seen life, death and miracles of all sorts. My message is as follows: I’ve travelled around the world and I’ve always established a bond based on loyalty with my players. I demand the utmost from them and there’s mutual respect between us. We have a laugh and a joke, but when we walk out onto the pitch we have to give our all.” On Roma's improvements in defence: “It depends on a lot of things. I don’t want us to press too high up the pitch. We did that twice and Juventus cut us apart really well in two touches. When we protect our four defenders, they feel more secure and the opposition has less space. This is the result of the tactical discussions we have during the week. "It doesn’t mean that we don’t want to attack. At times today we were too frenetic and in the first half we messed up a few passes where we should have shown more calmness.” On whether he could become a club advisor after leaving: “When I was first contacted this was suggested, but I still enjoy coaching and I want to coach. I’m finished here at the end of the year.” Alessandro Florenzi on asroma.com “Now we don’t need to look at the league table any more – we just need to do everything we can in these last two games, just as we did tonight. “We need to give everything we have, trying to win both and then we will see where we are; whether that is the Champions League, the Europa League, or neither. “We know we have not had the season that we wanted to. There are a lot of reasons why we haven’t done as well as we are capable of, from bad luck to mistakes from everyone. “But we need to finish this season without regrets. We need to be able to look each other in the face after the final whistle against Parma knowing that we gave everything and then whatever will be, will be. “We stayed in the game, we knew that it was not going to be easy. “We played to win but equally we did not want to concede. The coach made the right choices, the scoreline shows that. “Cengiz Under’s introduction was vital, I am very happy with what he did – we’ve missed him a lot and this is the player we want to see.” Antonio Mirante on asroma.com “I believe that, aside from the saves and the decisions from the gaffer, we’ve changed a little in our approach to defence. "We’re less exposed and when we have the ball we’re almost always set up well. This restores confidence and then the results start to come in. "We’re working so hard to get fourth place. We know things are complicated but we have the duty to keep going until the end.” On whether he could be number one next year: “The truth is that when I came here at the start of the year I knew my role, but then things changed and obviously it’s great to be able to play. However, it’s not a question of thinking about what I’ll do next year, it’s a question of working hard: my attitude to my job always needs to be perfect. "Despite the fact I knew I’d been brought here as a back-up keeper, I always trained as if I were playing the following Sunday. From this point of view I’m lucky because I’ve got a goalkeeping coach who doesn’t let up and also I genuinely never had the attitude of coming here to Roma to put my feet up.” Steven Nzonzi to Il Romanista "We certainly still believe we can reach the Champions League, there are still two matches before the end and anything can happen. We must work hard and believe in it until the end. There are still six points up for grabs, we must take them and then we will see what happens. On his future: "I am happy at Roma, I'm perfectly at ease. Now it is important to concentrate on the end of the season, reaching our objectives. What matters now is the present." Edin Dzeko on Facebook "Big win, vital three points." Bryan Cristante on Twitter "This team never gives up. Daje Roma!" Italy manager Roberto Mancini has chosen five Roma players to be involved in a tw0-day training camp next week in preparation for the country's Euro 2020 qualifiers.
Mancini's squad - which comprises a total of 32 members - only features players based in Serie A. Among those selected are Alessandro Florenzi, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Bryan Cristante, Nicolo Zaniolo and Stephan El Shaarawy. The training camp will take place between Monday 4th and Tuesday 5th February at Coverciano, as Italy prepare for matches against Finland and Liechtenstein next month. Although this squad won't compete in any matches during their time together, it gives an indication of who is in Mancini's thoughts ahead of next month's qualifiers. El Shaarawy is returning to an Italy squad for the first time since November 2017. The winger has a total of 23 caps for Italy since his 2012 debut, scoring three international goals. He was a member of their squad for Euro 2016, and will be aiming to play a role in its follow-up. Zaniolo has been one of the success stories of the season, not just for Roma, but in Serie A as a whole. Firmly in Mancini's thoughts since his first international call-up in September 2018, Zaniolo is still awaiting his senior debut. Pellegrini is becoming more and more influential for Roma, and is beginning to replicate that form for the Azzurri too. He will be hoping to make his first major international tournament next summer. His fellow midfielder Cristante has been steadily improving over the season, and will be looking to add to his six senior caps so far. Finally, Florenzi maintains his place in the national setup despite inconsistent club form. With 31 caps, he is the most experienced of the five players called up for the squad. Roma defender Alessandro Florenzi has signed a new five-year contract with the club.
Florenzi’s previous deal was set to expire next summer, but the 27-year-old has now renewed until 2023. He will reportedly earn €3m-per-year as a result. Florenzi graduated from the club’s academy in the 2010-11 season, and has progressed through the ranks to become the club’s vice-captain to Daniele De Rossi. In that time, he has only spent one season away from the club - he played for Crotone on loan in 2011-12. The Italy international has featured as a midfielder, winger or right-back for the club, with the latter becoming his most common position over the last few years. Florenzi has played for Roma over 200 times, and is now set to increase that total over the next few years. Roma will come up against one of the strongest sides in the world in the Champions League quarter finals, with Barcelona the opponents.
The draw for the last eight took place in Nyon this morning. Roma reached the stage after beating Shakhtar Donetsk on away goals. The first leg against Barcelona takes place at Camp Nou on 4th April, with Roma hosting the second leg six days later. The two sides have faced each other in the Champions League before. In 2015, Roma lost 6-1 away in the group stages. Prior to that, at home, the sides drew 1-1, with a memorable Alessandro Florenzi goal taking the headlines. Spotting Marc-Andre Ter Stegen off his line, the full back let fly from close to the half way line, scoring one of the best goals seen at the Olimpico in recent years. The tie will see returns to the Olimpico for former Roma players Lucas Digne and Thomas Vermaelen. There couldn't have been many more difficult draws for Roma, but at this stage of the competition, every game is going to be a challenge. Roma will need to play to their maximum potential over the two legs in the hope of securing an upset. |
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