Roma boss José Mourinho admitted he had mixed emotions following his team’s 2-2 draw against Sassuolo this evening.
The Giallorossi rescued a point in the dying seconds after Bryan Cristante connected on Lorenzo Pellegrini’s perfectly delivered corner.
“If you told me before the match that it’d be a draw I would’ve responded negatively,” he explained to DAZN.
“However, the emotional dynamics change a bit when you’re able to get a point in injury time. This isn’t the result we wanted, though. However, at least there’s a sense of unity within the squad to keep pushing until the very end.”
He continued, “It’s not easy to come here and earn an even share of possession. Kumbulla gave us a lot in terms of playing from the back, but we’re frustrated because we came to win.”
The result capped off a difficult week in the Italian capital for Mourinho’s men. They drew 0-0 last weekend in a controversy-filled affair against Genoa before being eliminated from the Coppa Italia by Inter on Tuesday.
Mourinho reportedly blew up on his team following the defeat to the Nerazzurri—an outburst which reportedly irked some of his players.
“Some of what we saw this week was fifth category journalism,” Mourinho explained.
“Some of the media lack ethics and are missing the essence of their profession: to tell the truth. If there’s one quality this team has it’s the harmony and friendship within the team.”
“We might get things wrong on the pitch, at which point everyone can say that Mourinho and the players are scarce. But no one can ever say we aren’t united.”
Finally, “We have to improve, do the best we can to finish better in the table and make it as far as we can in the Conference League.”
“Make no mistake, there’s still a lot of quality teams left in the competition. I watched Rennes, who are one of our potential opponents face PSG. We must continue to work and improve.”
