Daniele De Rossi explains he has no regrets over his life-long Roma career choice, and promises he won't retire before Francesco Totti.
The midfielder followed on the footsteps of Er Pupone and rejected all offers from bigger teams, both in Italy and abroad, claiming that he was more moved by the emotions he felt in the capital.
“Everyone was born with this passion, with this fate,” De Rossi told SI.com. “The alternative [of what my career could have been] sometimes passes through my mind. But it’s something I chose long ago.
Daniele De Rossi explains he has no regrets over his life-long Roma career choice, and promises he won't retire before Francesco Totti.
The midfielder followed on the footsteps of Er Pupone and rejected all offers from bigger teams, both in Italy and abroad, claiming that he was more moved by the emotions he felt in the capital.
“Everyone was born with this passion, with this fate,” De Rossi told SI.com. “The alternative [of what my career could have been] sometimes passes through my mind. But it’s something I chose long ago.
“It’s all about the matter of being a Roman. Sometimes on my couch I think, ‘If I were not born in Rome, I would never be a Roma fan. I would never feel this sort of debt, this duty, to my fans, to my people, to my city.’ For me, a good player, it could be easier for sure. But the other side of the coin is that I love to stay here. I love to make my people happy, for only one match, for only three matches. I love to see them happy.
“You can find crowds also in Chelsea, Madrid, Manchester United. But here I have my friends: my friends in the stands and people that I never knew. But they are just like my friends because they have the same passion, the same faith. We have the same story. We cried for the same matches. We’ve been sad for the same reason. We share our feelings even if we never knew each other.
"The one feeling bigger than the pride you feel when you play for Rome is the sadness you feel without Rome.”
The 33-year-old is in the autumn of his career, but he won't resign as long as Francesco Totti is still there.
“It wouldn’t be right toward the fans for me to leave as well, in the same year.
“The new ownership? Everything was different, it was more like a family before. When everything was changing, I started to think it could be better from an economic point of view. But it could be a little bit less human, what with a different ownership, a different language. But after a couple of months you can easily understand the passion that pushed our old ownership was similar to what's shown by the guys who own the club now.
“We can share our story and history with each population, country or cities. But it will always be different compared to what people in Rome will feel. We’re not afraid to share. Maybe this passion could provide an economic return that can make the club richer and stronger and hopefully soon win something very important.
“It’s all about ambitions, you know. For me, money, it’s not something that can move me from Rome to Chelsea. I already get money in Rome. So that’s not a difference. In another team I can get more money but this extra amount doesn’t matter. It’s all about ambitions.
“What’s more ambitious, a player who will want to go to win the Champions League in Real Madrid, or one who wants to win the league in Rome? Roma never won a lot of titles. In 90 years, we won three. It’s been hard. I think a great ambition could be also to try to win where nobody ever won. It’s more difficult.
“When you are a child, it’s different than how you come to be a Roma fan when you’re an adult. The adults now live with this pressure, this anxiety. It’s like work.
“Roma fans, they have some problems at home because of money, because of their child, and another problem could be also Roma’s season. It’s the other side of the coin, all these problems, these anxieties, these concerns about Roma’s fate. But we live with a pride, a pride to be Roma fans. They recognize themselves in us, me and Francesco.”