Roma director Tiago Pinto admits he feels ‘envious’ of RB Salzburg’s resources and approach to the sport and expects this to be a ‘difficult’ Europa League play-off.
The first leg kicks off at the Red Bull Arena in Salzburg at 17.45 GMT.
The Giallorossi won the Conference League last season and are now hoping to follow that with the Europa League, but first must get through this play-off against a RB Salzburg side that dropped down from the Champions League.
“I am not afraid to say I feel envious! I went to lunch with them today, they have a fabulous project, they have clear ideas and stick with it 100 per cent, it doesn’t matter if they qualify for the Champions League or Europa League,” Tiago Pinto told Sky Sport Italia.
“Obviously, the Austrian League is completely different to Italy, they put a lot of investment into the youth academies and are excellent at scouting. They have the opportunity to test young players, let them learn by making mistakes and then sell them on when they have developed.”
RB Salzburg have dropped down from the Champions League, where they held Milan and Chelsea to stalemates before finishing third in that group.
“They are a team with clear ideas of football, always play at 100mph, very aggressive and quick. We are prepared for that. They historically have a good record at home against big clubs, I got the sense this was a big opportunity for them to play against Roma and we must compete with them on that same level of motivation.”
Inevitably, there were more questions about Jose Mourinho’s future, as the coach has been dropping hints he could depart after becoming frustrated with the lack of finances.
“We meet every day, people keep asking me the same questions, I realise you are curious, but our future is today and we must concentrate only on one game at a time. The rest will be approached at the right time and dealt with internally.”
Roma lifted the Conference League last season, their first ever official UEFA trophy, so the motivation is high to follow that up with a long Europa League run.
“We went out of the Coppa Italia, but we are in Europe and want to make the most of this competition. It’s not the Champions League, but when Thursday comes along, all the players are eager to get out there and play.”