Zdenek Zeman claims there is no winning mentality at Roma. “They want the maximum result with the minimum effort.”
The former Giallorossi Coach had two separate spells with the club under Italian and American owners, but neither ended well.
Now the team is struggling again and set to fire Rudi Garcia after tomorrow’s game with Genoa. Zeman is not surprised.
“It was sad watching their last few games,” he told the Corriere dello Sport. “There’s something wrong and it is just so obvious.
Zdenek Zeman claims there is no winning mentality at Roma. “They want the maximum result with the minimum effort.”
The former Giallorossi Coach had two separate spells with the club under Italian and American owners, but neither ended well.
Now the team is struggling again and set to fire Rudi Garcia after tomorrow’s game with Genoa. Zeman is not surprised.
“It was sad watching their last few games,” he told the Corriere dello Sport. “There’s something wrong and it is just so obvious.
“I had to commentate on the Barcelona match on Swiss television and that was not easy. I can understand defeat if you play, but not without even attempting. If I’d been on the end of a 6-1 defeat, people would’ve said it was the usual Zeman result.
“In 2013 I was fired after I simply said in an interview that I wanted respect for the rules, that order should have the priority inside an organised system. We cannot do without clear principles and regulations, otherwise there is no future.
“Football has changed and now the role of a Coach is that of someone looking after the team, while clubs are slaves to the players.
“At Roma the players do what they want. I always had 12 on the treatment table and two stuck on the motorway, so I wasn’t happy with that.
“There is a sense of professionalism that needs to be nurtured, always, and that’s what I was aiming for.
“The trouble with Roma is they want the maximum result with the minimum effort.
“The players on my side at the time were Erik Lamela, Marquinhos, Alessandro Florenzi, but also Miralem Pjanic, even if he complained. It’s a shame, because he was caught in a misunderstanding. Pjanic was signed to replace Francesco Totti.
“I am at least glad Totti isn’t playing at the moment, because he carried Roma on his shoulders for 20 years, now they can’t blame him for the current problems.
“Totti was the best player I ever worked with. Alen Boksin was the second best, although it depended on what mood he was in when he woke up that day.”