Roma manager Jose Mourinho revealed in his post-match press conference following his side’s loss to Napoli that Dutch rightback Rick Karsdorp was not his first choice to start this evening.
Karsdorp – fresh off a meniscus surgery he underwent a month ago – braved through a painful and swelling knee to replace Nicola Zalewski who was deemed unavailable earlier in the day.
“Zalewski was supposed to play on the right flank today. Karsdorp was in no condition to play for 90 minutes tonight,” said the Special One.
“To give you an idea of the effort he showed tonight: during halftime he couldn’t sit, otherwise his knee would have locked due to swelling. He stood for ten minutes.”
