Roma boss José Mourinho was content with his team’s 1-1 draw versus Leicester City in their first leg semifinal clash in the Conference League.
The two sides shared the spoils at the King Power Stadium in East Midlands. Roma captain Lorenzo Pellegrini’s early first half goal was canceled out by Ademola Lookman’s second half equaliser.
“Does tonight show our growth? I’m not very humble or at least I don’t have a reputation of being, but I have to agree with you,” Mourinho joked with Sky Sport.
“For me, we definitely would’ve lost this game 5-6 months ago. We had courage to come out and play the way we did initially: we pressed high and got guys forward.”
“We could’ve taken home a win, we shouldn’t have conceded that goal. But it’s still an acceptable result. There’s still a final to be played: I’m not referring to the one in Tirana, rather the one next week in Rome.”
Adding, “Next week we’ll have to keep our heads and have a strong mentality, we can’t play emotionally. The emotion will be needed from the supporters.”
“However, now our minds shift to Bologna because we need to solidify our place in the table. This is where our focus has to be.”
“On the goal, Zalewski does very well. It’s wonderful to see him playing like this. He’s a boy that’s been at Roma since he joined the academy when he was 9-10 years old and now he plays in the first team.”