José Mourinho suggests that he can’t become Roma‘s Sir Alex Ferguson and defends Carlo Ancelotti: ‘He couldn’t win the Champions League at Everton…’

The Special One spoke to the media at Trigoria on the open day organized by the club and UEFA. Mourinho has recently confirmed that he will remain at the club in 2022-23, but does he see himself becoming Roma’s Sir Alex Ferguson?

“Ferguson has remained there [Man United] for more than 20 years,” Mou said at a press conference, as quoted by Forzaroma.info.

“I should remain here until 79. Perhaps, I could stay until I turn 70. I understand the question, I love being here and I think you can see that. I’ve accepted a three-year project, let’s see what will happen then. I am not thinking about leaving before the end of my contract, but let’s see how the project shapes. Sometimes it’s similar to what one imagines, sometimes, it’s different.

“The present is the only thing that matters in football and I want to stay here. That’s the best way to answer the question.”

Some fans and pundits considered Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti as ‘finished’ coaches, but they have both qualified for European finals this season. Roma will play in the Conference League Final against Feyenoord next week, while Real Madrid will face Liverpool in the Champions League Final in Paris on May 28.

“The problem with Carlo is that he could not win the Champions League at Everton,” said Mourinho.

“Somebody expected me to win [Serie A] this season, but it wasn’t the case. I’ve never been concerned about it. I don’t think about new generations. I think about the quality, which has nothing to do with age.

“There are good footballers at 20 and 40. I’d like to see some of my 20-yaer-old players score the same goals as Fabio Quagliarella, who is 40. For coaches, age doesn’t count, but if you don’t have passion, you are finished. When you don’t feel pressure before these games, you are finished.

“I know myself and I know Carlo quite well. We will decide when to stop. If someone is waiting for it, they’ll have to wait longer because it won’t happen soon.”

Roma will face Torino in the last Serie A games of the season on Sunday before next week’s Conference League Final. Mourinho provided the latest team news, revealing that Chris Smalling may not recover in time for the game in Tirana.

Mourinho believes Feyenoord have ‘big advantage’ over Roma

“He is injured, so he has 0% chance to play against Torino. He is in doubt for Wednesday,” he said.

“Henrikh Mkhitaryan got injured against Leicester and still needs time. He hasn’t trained with the team since and there are no chances to see him on Friday, very few chances for Wednesday.

“Nicolò Zaniolo could be back for the Final. If he recovers well, he could play on Friday as well, without thinking about the Final. Rick Karsdorp is the closest one to recovering but remains in doubt [for Friday].

“I want to win the Final for myself, of course, but most of all for the fans who haven’t lived a moment like this for a long time. The players will make the first step toward a long and winning career. I feel less selfish and more a man of the group and people. I want to win for them.

“When I saw this competition [Conference League] without English, Spanish or German teams at the beginning of the season, I thought it was an inferior trophy, but even the biggest teams must take every game very seriously, otherwise they go out.

“Big stadiums like the Velodrome and the Olimpico were full [for the semi-finals], it has become an important competition because we have helped UEFA become so. Next year, people will watch this competition with different eyes.”

Lazio boss Maurizio Sarri said the Biancocelesti should not think about finishing above Roma in the table. “The time has come to stop thinking in such a provincial manner. This is a city that deserves two strong teams,” he claimed earlier this month.

“I usually don’t comment on other coaches’ words, but I agree in this case,” said Mourinho.

“We should not look at these things. I’ve understood what it means to lose a derby and what it means to win it by far. However, I believe that we coaches should learn from the popular culture because it’s very important. I’ve always tried to do it, in this case, I’ve become a Romanista and these things have a meaning.”

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