Why Roma could sack Juric just six weeks after replacing De Rossi

Less than two months after his appointment, Roma coach Ivan Juric is already at risk of losing his job at the Stadio Olimpico and multiple reports suggest that Daniele De Rossi, who was sacked in September, is the most likely candidate to replace him. 

Here is how Roma ended up in crisis again, just just six weeks after their last managerial appointment. 

De Rossi sacking and Juric appointment 

On September 18, Roma confirmed that they had parted company with club legend Daniele De Rossi just four games into the season. He was without a win across his first four Serie A matches of 2024-25 and had picked up just one win in his last 11 competitive matches in charge. 

Roma wasted no time in appointing Juric later on that same afternoon. The Croatian took charge of his first session just a few hours after his predecessor had left the training ground for the last time. 

The ruthless sacking of a club legend so soon after the start of the season left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Giallorossi supporters, and many of them took their frustrations out on the club’s senior players outside the training ground after the news of De Rossi’s dismissal. 

As it transpires, reports suggest that many of Roma’s players were on the fans’ side as well, as they were also taken aback by the decision to let go of De Rossi four games into the season. 

A good start is quickly forgotten

Though Roma supporters staged a boycott on Juric’s Olimpico debut, the coach managed to temporarily improve the mood with a convincing 3-0 victory over high-flying Udinese. That was followed up by a 1-1 draw with Athletic Club in the Europa League and another 2-1 win over Venezia back in Serie A. 

It has all been a steep downhill since then, though. Roma were embarrassed by IF Elfsborg in the Europa League, then drew 1-1 with Monza, lost 1-0 to Inter and have most recently suffered a humiliating 5-1 defeat at the hands of Fiorentina. 

For reference, De Rossi had three points from his last four matches in charge of the club, while Juric has four from his last four in Serie A. Alarmingly, results have not improved, and perhaps more concerningly, nor has the mood surrounding the Stadio Olimpico. 

Supporters have not taken to Juric, who has had a difficult task in following such a fondly-admired figure in the dugout, while other figures in Italian football have begun to criticise the tactician and his ability to turn things around for Roma. 

Antonio Cassano, for example, believes that he does not have the stature required to lead a team of Roma’s status, and made comparisons to the short-lived appointment of Walter Mazzarri at Napoli last season. 

Confrontations between coach and players 

To add to the tension at Roma, some of the team’s most senior players were reportedly involved in some sort of physical altercation at half-time during the 5-1 defeat to Fiorentina. 

Juric was said to be irate when he entered the dressing room at half-time and had an argument with Gianluca Mancini about his defending in the build-up to Moise Kean’s second goal of the game. 

Tuesday’s edition of Corriere dello Sport reports that Juric then threw a bottle in frustration, which hit Mancini and possibly bounced off Lorenzo Pellegrini as well. There are unconfirmed reports that Mancini and his coach engaged in a physical altercation afterwards. 

Regardless of the unsavoury scenes against Fiorentina, Roma did not make the decision to sack Juric, who remains in charge ahead of the visit from Torino on Thursday. 

What happens next? De Rossi? Ranieri? 

The overriding calls in the Italian press and from the Giallorossi supporters are for De Rossi to be reinstated, just six weeks after he was let go and promised that he would not come back. 

There are also suggestions that 73-year-old Claudio Ranieri could be approached for a job as an executive, lending support to current general manager Florent Ghisolfi. 

Juric is still officially in charge, however, and took charge of training on Tuesday, which indicates that he will still be in charge for the Torino game on Thursday. What happens after that remains to be seen.