Daniele De Rossi describes his visit to Diego Armando Maradona’s home, what went wrong for Carlos Bianchi at Roma and his wish as a coach. ‘I’d love to come back to Boca.’
The World Cup winner ended his playing career in Argentina with Boca in January 2020, after six months, seven games and one goal for the club.
“I do miss Boca and Argentina. I enjoyed every single minute of my time there,” De Rossi told ESPN Argentina.
Daniele De Rossi describes his visit to Diego Armando Maradona’s home, what went wrong for Carlos Bianchi at Roma and his wish as a coach. ‘I’d love to come back to Boca.’
The World Cup winner ended his playing career in Argentina with Boca in January 2020, after six months, seven games and one goal for the club.
“I do miss Boca and Argentina. I enjoyed every single minute of my time there,” De Rossi told ESPN Argentina.
“I wasn’t able to give my all and that hurt, as I arrived without much training and wanted to play as if I was still 27 years old, but that was not possible.
“Boca did offer to keep me for a few more months, especially (Juan Roman) Riquelme, but I explained my personal situation and they respected the fact my family needed me.
“I still speak to Nico Burdisso every week, he even came over to my house when he was in Rome, as he was more than a teammate or a club director for me. I can always learn something from him.
“I am also still in regular contact with Carlos Tevez, along with many others.”
De Rossi has started the course to get his coaching badges and follow in the footsteps of his father Alberto, who has for many years been coach of the Roma youth team.
“I am studying now and my first coaching experience will certainly be in Europe, but one day I’d love to come back to Boca,” said the 37-year-old.
“I learned from all the coaches I worked with, but the one that really made me fall in love was Luis Enrique. He has an ethical code and taught me how to deal with the group, respect the coach and teammates. I also learned more about how to deal with the ball on the pitch, even if I was already 29 or 30.
“I had wonderful years with Luciano Spalletti and Antonio Conte, who were phenomenal coaches.”
The brief spell that Carlos Bianchi had at Roma was disappointing, although De Rossi insists there’s a very good reason why.
“He had problems with Francesco Totti, and that is something that makes a big difference at Roma. He’s like a God for us, the way Riquelme or Diego Maradona was treated in Argentina.”
It was while playing for Boca Juniors that De Rossi also visited Maradona’s home in Buenos Aires.
“It was incredible. I didn’t think he really wanted to meet me, but when I went to his house, I never wanted to leave. He wanted to get to know me, talk about his country and Boca.
“He was a truly special person. When I heard the news he had died, I didn’t want to believe it, and to be honest, I still struggle to believe it. He cannot die, he’s a legend.”