Roma starlet Nicolò Zaniolo was unhappy with his exclusion from the Rome derby on Sunday and will consider his future at the club amid links with Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur.
José Mourinho left the 22-year-old on the bench for the entire match against Lazio and according to Calciomercato.com, Zaniolo didn’t take the Special One’s choice well. It’s not the first time Zaniolo has been disappointed by his coach’s decision.
At the beginning of the month, Mourinho didn’t start the 22-year-old in an away match in his hometown Spezia, but the Italy starlet was introduced in the second half and earned a late penalty converted by Tammy Abraham. According to reports, Mou was upset with Zaniolo, who had gone clubbing the previous weekend.
As highlighted by Calciomercato.com, Zaniolo remained quiet on social media despite Roma’s 3-0 win in the derby della Capitale on Sunday and only published a new post on Monday from Coverciano, where he is training with the national team.
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After the derby, he was comforted by his father Igor and some friends who came from Spezia to watch him in action, but Zaniolo spent 90 minutes on the bench against Lazio.
The midfielder will consider his future at the end of the season with rumours linking him with Tottenham and Juventus. Fabio Paratici is a huge admirer of the 22-year-old and already tried to sign him in Turin.
Likewise, Juventus have also been following the Fiorentina academy product and could make an attempt to sign him in the summer to replace Paulo Dybala. Zaniolo has yet to reach an agreement with Roma to extend his contract beyond 2024.
In February, club director Tiago Pinto said that he couldn’t guarantee Zaniolo would remain at the Stadio Olimpico next season, but José Mourinho insisted that the player would stay at Roma as long as possible he remains at the club.
#Zaniolo: amarezza post derby, silenzi e la corte della #Juve. Ecco perché può partire https://t.co/aB1WuydUoy pic.twitter.com/UZBoDBb1zZ
— calciomercato.com (@cmdotcom) March 22, 2022
a non story
made up from thin air, no one should be paid for writing this kind of nonsense
He didnt look unhappy. Gossip guff. Do better FI.
Calciomercato.com inventing rumour, clown
Well…if true…he handled it well. Always nice to see young players exhibit professional approach.
He has not been as productive as we had hoped this season. He is performing like someone who is expendable and Roma could get a lot for him if they cut the cord now.
This is Mourinho’s mind games. All in the demented form of mind games. Who doesn’t start a player playing in their hometown?
Those knee injuries set this kid back big time…
Usual anti mourinho media rubbish. Amazing the crap that’s being dished out by so called journalists these days.