Roma captain Daniele De Rossi calls the Scudetto “my biggest target” and says he’s “in love” with the club.
The midfielder has spent his entire career with the Giallorossi, and following Francesco Totti’s retirement he has taken over the captain’s armband.
However, he made his debut the season after the Lupi’s most recent Scudetto, and the Italian international is targeting the title before he retires.
“It’s my biggest target,” De Rossi told NBC, while in America for pre-season.
Roma captain Daniele De Rossi calls the Scudetto “my biggest target” and says he’s “in love” with the club.
The midfielder has spent his entire career with the Giallorossi, and following Francesco Totti’s retirement he has taken over the captain’s armband.
However, he made his debut the season after the Lupi’s most recent Scudetto, and the Italian international is targeting the title before he retires.
“It’s my biggest target,” De Rossi told NBC, while in America for pre-season.
“It’s what I’m following with my career. I know the other guys know what that means for the people here in Rome and I would like to explain it a little bit deeply what it can mean to win a Scudetto right here in Rome.
“It’s part of our job to know what can happen if we win, and it can be something that we never forget.
“This season? It’s clearly very early but you can see that there’s a group, with a lot of people who are 27, 28, 24, who are not so much young players and that’s important because at 27 you already know almost everything you need to be a professional player.”
De Rossi was also asked about leadership on the pitch, and his relationship with Roma.
“It’s something you have inside, your character, but also something you build during your career and your life.
“It’s not something you have to show every second in football or a work place.
“You have to be nice with your teammates, you have to be available if they need something, and that’s it.
“If you have to raise your voice, you do it, but it’s nothing special. The same things the other guys do.
“First of all, inside the pitch you are respected by your teammates. Also outside the pitch, you know that your job is going good when you see things going in the right way, the normal way, nothing weird, nothing special, nothing perfect, the right way!
“Normal people who love their work and love their job will respect each other.
“How do I want to be seen? As a professional player, a nice guy, but most of all a player crazy in love with his team.
“And also as a good player, because I think I am. Nothing more. What happened to Francesco [Totti] is something unbelievable and unrepeatable. I’m happy. I will be happy if a lot of people remember me as a nice guy, as a huge person who loves Roma as much as he can.
“There’s something inside of us, Roman citizens. Rome is a city full of stories, full of history, full of old things.
“There are monuments, what you can read in books, but also people connected to art like Ennio Morricone or Sergio Leone.
“It’s a mix of new things that we have to do, and also remain connected with our past. It’s something you have to remember, not forget, and can affect our way to lead and live outside of football and the way we play.”