The Latest AS Roma News
Francesco Totti has confirmed his resignation from his role as a director at Roma, but insisted it was an "arrivederci", not a goodbye.
Totti has been a director since he retired from playing in 2017 - a decision that was made by the club rather than himself. However, he is now leaving that position as well, complaining that he was not given enough responsibilities. It means that, for the first time this century, Francesco Totti is no longer employed by AS Roma. At his farewell press conference - at which no other club officials were present - Totti confirmed the reasons for his departure. "It was not my fault because I never had the chance to express myself. I was never involved in a genuine technical project. In the first year, that can happen. In the second, I realised what I wanted to do and we never got together, never helped each other. "They knew my intentions and what I wanted to do, to give so much to this club and this team, but they never wanted me to, in all honesty. They excluded me from every decision. "Everyone knows they made me stop playing. They wanted me to stop. I had a six-year contract already as a director. I started quietly, realising it's a completely different sphere to being on the field. "Many promises were made and they were never kept. They knew what I wanted. Naturally, as time goes on, you judge, you evaluate, as I too have a character and don't just sit there doing what they every now and then ask me to do. "I did it for Roma, but as time wore on, I didn't think it fair to put myself at the disposal of people who never wanted me to be there. "The main focus of certain people has been to remove Romans from Roma. In the end, the truth came out, because they achieved what they wanted. "Over the last eight years, since the Americans came in, they tried in every possible way to shove us to one side. As the years went on, they tried everything they could... It's what they wanted and in the end, they succeeded." Totti also hit out at Franco Baldini, who has been advising James Pallotta on the club's decisions, with his viewpoints often at odds with the will of the fans. "The rapport with Franco Baldini has never existed and never will. If I made this decision, it's only normal that there were misunderstandings, problems within the club. "One of us had to go, I stepped aside because you can't have too many people sticking their oar in and causing chaos. Everyone should do their own job and leave the others to get on with their own work, that'd allow everything to run smoothly. "You can do all the talking you want from Trigoria, but the last word will always come from London. There was no point telling people what was wrong and what needed fixing, as it was a waste of time. Nobody listened, they just listened to the word from London." Another key club figure to bear the brunt of Totti's criticism was Pallotta. "A player can always find an excuse, as when things go badly, he says, 'Oh, there's no president here, nobody who tells us how things really are', and this causes problems for the squad every weekend. In my view, it does damage. "I've said before that the president needs to be present more, because when players, directors and staff see the chief, they stand to attention and work the way they ought to. When the boss isn't there, they start doing what they want." The former captain then gave some insight into what role he would have liked to take on. "If I made this decision, then it means I was unable to do anything. I never felt a part of the project, above all on the technical level. Not to big myself up, but I think I have a good eye to see who is a good player and who isn't. "I don't want to do other things, because this is what I feel that I'm good at. With my experience, and I admit I'll make mistakes, but I can recognise talent in a player." Even though Totti admitted he was not saying goodbye to Roma forever, he confirmed that he will not be returning as long as Pallotta is in charge. "Many things made me think about this. I was never allowed to participate, they called me in to I think 10 meetings over two years. They'd always call me at the last minute, as if they were trying to keep me out. After a while, that starts to really weigh on you. "It shows a lack of respect not for a director, but for a person. I tried to bring something to this club, but I saw the thought process on the other side was different. "If I were to return to Roma, we'd need a new owner. First and foremost. If the new owners believed in me, then that would be great. "What I can say is that I will never hurt Roma. This is far worse than retiring as a player. Leaving Roma is like dying. I feel like it'd be better if I died. "So many have told me over the years that I am too much of a weight on this club. That I get in the way. "I wouldn't return if Baldini left, because what's happened has happened. The vase is broken, it cannot be put together again. They made their choice and if they were going to remove Baldini, they would've done it already. "I have nothing against Pallotta and Baldini. They made their choices and I respect that." One of the main issues Totti had a lack of input in was the appointment of the new coach, Paulo Fonseca. "I never talked about or asked about money. I asked to be a technical director because I think I am competent at finding good players. I never asked to run everything. "I asked to make the same decisions as everyone else, but if they get a new coach, get players, sell players and don't ask you, then what kind of a technical director am I? "I didn't go to London because they called me two days before and had already struck a deal with the coach. I don't even know if they've chosen a sporting director. "The only coach I ever called and spoke to was Antonio Conte. It is not true that I called or sent a message to [Gian Piero] Gasperini, [Gennaro] Gattuso or [Sinisa] Mihajlovic. It's all fantasy. "So if they act like I made all these calls and was turned down, yet they made one call to Fonseca and he accepted, no. I will not be made to look like a fool. There is zero truth to it. "I thank [CEO Guido] Fienga publicly, as he is the only one in the club who stood up in front of everyone and said if he were in charge, Totti would be the first choice as technical director. He was the only one who ever stood up for me. "The only coach I ever called along with Fienga was Claudio Ranieri. I made a decision the others didn't want and it was done thanks to Fienga. "I also thank Ranieri, as he would've come to Roma for free. He is a real man. We didn't talk about money, the team, he immediately said: 'Tomorrow I will be at Trigoria.' "Roma fans should be thankful to Ranieri and I am so glad the fans did that during Daniele's last game. "Guido Fienga and I called Conte, before Pallotta knew about it. I said the only one who can transform Roma right now is Antonio Conte. He had given us the all-clear, as we saw and talked to him many times, but then there were problems and he changed his mind." Now, Roma look to an uncertain future without Totti or Daniele De Rossi, who was not offered a new contract by the club despite nearly two decades of service - something which angered his former teammate. "I never got involved in the De Rossi decision. I had already told some directors in September that if you think this is Daniele's last season, tell him straight away, not like with me where you told me two rounds from the end. "He is the captain of Roma, he has to be respected. They all said yes, we'll evaluate, we'll consider, he got injured, the results weren't coming, Di Francesco and Monchi left, it all became more complicated. "The problem at Trigoria is they need to be done straight away, not allowing time to pass. People are scared to make decisions. There has to be one person who makes a decision, not 10. "I talked to Daniele as a friend, not as a director. I told him to look forward, look beyond. I was a Roma director, I couldn't say too much, but as a friend I gave him advice that there could be problems on the horizon. "The problems did arrive, just as they did with me. What I don't understand is if they did this because it's what they wanted to do or if they just didn't think about it. "From what I've seen, it's what they have always wanted: to remove the Romans from Roma." Totti then revealed his thoughts on Roma's current predicament. "Fonseca has to find an environment that is relaxed, with a clear path ahead of him. People already admire him for how he put himself at the disposal of the club. From what I've seen, he is a fine coach who can do well and was very impressive at Shakhtar. "I wasn't ever going to change Roma, but at least give a contribution. Many promises were made, very few of them real. As a fan, that disappoints me, because as a fan, I have dreams of seeing Roma compete at the top. "Even if we don't win the Scudetto, we can compete and maybe win a trophy or two. Unfortunately, there are financial problems and they have to be respected. "If we have to sell because this year we are running at a loss of €50-60m, we can't sell youth players and get that amount of money. We have to sell important players. That's how it works. This isn't a surprise to anyone. "If I was the president of Roma and had two icons like Totti and De Rossi, I'd put them in charge of everything. They have ethics, they know everything about what it means to be Roman and Romanista. "Pallotta surrounded himself with the wrong people and he only listens to them. Everyone makes mistakes, but if you make the same mistakes for eight years, you have to ask yourself some questions. Something clearly is going wrong. "Did someone stab me in the back at Trigoria? Yes. I will never name names, but there are people in there who don't want me there. These people are hurting Roma, not doing what is best for the club. "Pallotta isn't there, he doesn't know what's going on, but I do. I know it like the pockets in my jeans. I know everyone from the usher and cleaners to the chiefs. I grew up in there. I know what the problems are, the resources, who is talking badly behind people's backs. "If someone talks behind another person's back to you, then imagine what he says when you're not there. I think Pallotta in Boston only gets a tenth of the real truth reported back to him. "Over the last few weeks, they tried in every way to keep me there, but via third parties. In two years, I never heard directly from Pallotta or Baldini. They have never called me or sent a message directly "What would you think in that situation? Would you feel loved and wanted there? No, if I make mistakes, that's fine, tell me to my face. None of it ever happened. "As far as I am concerned, I was cumbersome for this club. People told me both as a player and a director that I am a burden. It hurt more this time than to leave as a player, because it's like leaving your mother." When asked if he would thank Pallotta for anything, Totti amicably replied: "I thank him for giving me the chance to stay at Roma, to work and learn a different role. I got to know things as a director that otherwise I never would've known. I thank him so much for that. "Let it be clear: I want Pallotta to succeed and I hope he can take Roma back to where they belong, at the top. I hope he can get the right advice and achieve greatness. "I spoke to Pallotta only once, when I retired as a player. I went to London with my wife and Baldini was there. That is literally the only time we spoke face to face about anything. "I never thought after 30 years of Roma that I'd be here saying goodbye to Roma. I never imagined it. "Pallotta needs to understand Roma and the real problems within Trigoria. I hoped to discuss many things with him, but I never got the opportunity. "I don't want anyone thinking I am against Pallotta or want him to fail, because Roma is Roma and the rest is irrelevant. I just hope that from today, he changes tack. "I don't think they realise what they're doing here, because they don't live in the city, experience the TV, the radio, the papers. Being a Roman, understanding what it means to be Roman, is completely different. You have to be here to realise it. "I am sure that the message coming through to Boston is only 1% of the reality. I hope they can realise what they've been doing in removing the Romans from Roma, but evidently that was their choice and what they wanted. "I am not angry, I am not going against Pallotta or Baldini. I am just explaining why I resigned." Another decision where Totti's input was not taken seriously was the decision to sign Javier Pastore instead of Hakim Ziyech last summer, a move which turned out to be a disaster. "I will not name any players out of respect. I returned from vacation the first year that I retired, they asked me for an opinion on a player and I said that at this moment he would not be good for Roma, because Di Francesco plays 4-3-3. He is in another role, he's had a thousand injuries, in my view, you'd need another player. "Other directors said I always complain, that I cause problems, that I create issues. They asked for my opinion. I would've made a different choice and I think it would've been the right one. "I would've chosen an Ajax player." That was one of many decisions that highlighted the clear discord between Di Francesco and Monchi, which irked Totti. "After a Champions League semi-final, you think next year, you must head to the final. But selling players, and I want to defend Di Francesco - although I want to be clear Monchi chose him, not me, I made no decisions - he asked for four or five players who were never signed. "It's too easy to hide, because the truth hurts. The coach may well have made mistakes, but he asked for four or five players and they signed zero."
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
October 2019
Categories
All
|