Ante Coric recently concluded his time at Roma following the expiry of his contract.
The Croatian midfielder failed to impress Roma’s management over the years, collecting only 3 appearances since joining in 2018.
In a recent interview with Il Romanista, Coric complained about Roma’s treatment of him and fellow teammate William Bianda – both excluded from any team activities since Mourinho’s arrival in 2021.
“Yes, my adventure at Roma is over or rather, as Roma fans would say, my “holiday” is over. And in recent years I can’t blame them, but it was the club’s decision, not mine. It’s a long story….but I don’t want to badmouth anyone, I just have to say thanks to Roma despite only 3 appearances.”
“I was labelled the new Modric? You have to demonstrate certain qualities on the pitch. And with Roma, unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to do so.”
“To have regrets you have to play. I certainly deserved a little more space in the team, but that’s how it went. I have to tell you that I haven’t been very lucky. I had several injuries, I didn’t feel good in some teams, like during my loan at Venlo, but I didn’t have many options, Roma chose those teams for me. And every time I returned to Trigoria I hoped I could have my chance. But it was not the case.”
“You will not believe me but I never spoke to Mourinho. And I never got the chance to talk to Tiago Pinto. If you think about it, it’s strange, a player under contract who doesn’t talk to the coach and the sporting director. Pinto never wanted to meet me and it’s a choice I respected.”
“I don’t want to say anything negative, but it was a difficult time. Being told that I couldn’t enter via the main entrance but use the back gate… well it doesn’t make you feel like a footballer, you feel like someone who has created problems for the club but I have never created them. I don’t know why this kind of anger toward me but I will never say anything negative about the club and the fans.”
