On the eve of Roma’s second Europa League match of the season, Jose Mourinho addressed the media in today’s press conference.
The Portuguese technician once again spoke about his suspension (four games) which will prevent him from being on the touchline tomorrow night.
“Obviously not being on the bench can have a minor impact on the team, but I have confidence in my players and staff,” he said.
On Paulo Dybala, Mourinho remarked, “Tomorrow he will be on the bench. I want to rest him and a few others. However, our objective doesn’t change – we want to win and we will do everything it takes to win, therefore we won’t rotate too much.”
“We prepared this game as best as we could. We analyzed and worked a lot on the good things we did against Frosinone as well as the mistakes we made.”
“Servette must be respected. They struggled in the league but they had a good coach whom I met when I was at United. It will be a difficult game for us.”
“It is still too early to say how far we can get in this competition,” Mourinho added when asked about the Europa League. “We have to think first about qualifying and then about finishing first in the group. Also, we must take into account that some good teams from the Champions League may as well join us.”
“Bove? He will get his minutes. When you talk about Bove, give me some credit for making him stay. He will play tomorrow. He is an extraordinary lad because he always works hard and has grown a lot because he has a great sense of responsibility. He is an important player for us and for Italy. He continues to grow and I’m very proud of him.”
“Paredes? He’s not a little boy anymore. He’s a complete player, a finished product. He’s someone who I really like in the offensive phase, now that I work with him. I love him with the ball at his feet.”
“He’s perfect in a team that almost always has more possession. It’s his characteristic, an important connection between the defenders and the attack. He’s extremely calm. I liked Nemanja [Matic] very, very much. He played for me in 3 different clubs. I like Paredes a lot, for his personality, and as a player. But he’s defensively fragile.”
