Fienga discusses season restart, recent events and more

Here's what Fienga had to say...

Guido Fienga, the season starts imminently. So shall we start with the Covid-19 challenges you’ve faced, or what happened with Gianluca Petrachi?

“We’ll start by saying that we are all pleased with how the club and the players have faced a pandemic that was impossible to prepare for. It has shown the maturity and professionalism of a group of truly impressive men.

“Fonseca, the players and the coaching staff have all been united, training hard and working together to keep fitness levels up in anticipation of a restart to the season that, for such a long time, was by no means certain.

“And I am also thankful to all of them for the support they gave to the club throughout the whole period – and that’s not just in reference to the club’s emergency initiatives that they helped with and contributed to, but also the way they came together to solve some very real and practical issues for the club [in terms of wage deferrals etc.].

“We have always been in favour of resuming the season, as it is the only way to return to some form of normality – even if without the fans it could never really be quite the same. Especially for a team like Roma, where the fans are always like a 12th man on the pitch.

“We have done everything to resume, with maximum attention paid to hygiene and security in order to protect all the players and their families.”

In light of that unity shown, however, the suspension of the sporting director so close to the restart of the season seems like something of an own goal – almost a form of self-harm. What happened?

“We do not believe that Roma is being damaged. We continue to believe and follow our project to grow and develop, and we entrust that process to people that know how to make it into a reality.

“We wanted to avoid making the decision to suspend the sporting director but clearly it became unavoidable – the trust had been broken, which is the basis of any working relationship. But the focus of the club and the team remains 100% on what is important, with the return of the league and the Europa League.”

On social media there was outrage, however. There are those that think removing the sporting director illustrates a reduction in the club’s ambition.

“Above all I would have to say that the Roma project does not include any sort of downsizing; it is bigger than any individual and will push forward on the same trajectory that we have always demonstrated. The intention to raise the level of the team and the club, to where it deserves to be in both Italy and in Europe, has not changed one iota.

“Petrachi played his part in that continued development but it had become clear, especially in light of some of his recent comments made both publicly and privately, that there was a breakdown in the alignment between him and senior management at the club.

“In any case, that breakdown will not have any impact on the transfer market.”

The coarse manner and approach of the sporting director is now known, but could you not have overlooked that?

“Believe me, we would have preferred to avoid making a decision of this nature with a week to go until the season resumes, especially given all the effort that has gone in to getting to this point. But clearly that wasn’t an option.”

Moving on: are negotiations with the Friedkin Group still ongoing?

“The terms of the potential sale of the club are something that rest with those that make the valuations. But it is absolutely clear what the task is for those that oversee the club: to continue to ensure Roma develops and grows, with a mix of young players and established stars, to satisfy their own ambitions and to play in any and every competition with the realistic intention of trying to win it.

“Any eventual change of ownership of the club will not have any impact on that strategy and the way the club is run.”

Sometimes the names of Roma players are linked with other clubs as if Roma were a supermarket…

“I think that the club showed last summer that it is not a supermarket, as many describe it or consider it. Our aim is always to keep our best players and tie them to our plan to keep growing and developing, by offering them a project where they can achieve all the targets they have set themselves.

“I can assure you that, from the coach to the players, the sense of unity with the project is very strong. Nevertheless, talking about the transfer market when there are still 12 games to go and a Europa League campaign to finish is premature.

“We will focus on following our objectives and keeping hold of the players that show their worth. Right now in the market we are only committed to a few deals, that were agreed previously. We want to qualify for the Champions League and win the Europa League. That is all we are thinking about.”

So Lorenzo Pellegrini and Nicolo Zaniolo will stay?

“The answer to that is in the response I just gave. We want Nicolo and Lorenzo to find here at Roma a place where they can achieve everything they want to. This is the right way to motivate all our players and make them see their futures at this club.”

You have many powers now; is this your Roma?

“I don’t think Roma can be attached to any one individual. This is not Fonseca’s Roma, or Fienga’s Roma, or a player’s Roma or a sporting director’s Roma. It’s just Roma. There is a bigger cause: that should be absolutely clear to anyone who works for the club.”

During Pallotta’s term there have not been any trophies, but if he left would the legacy be as bad as many fans seem to think?

“If I think about where we began and where Roma is now, it’s not fair to consider it in a negative light. Last year we admitted to some failings for a few mistakes we made, and we have worked incredibly hard to remedy those.

“I can absolutely assure you all that the frustration of not having brought success is huge, and we do not feel that the growth of the club in so many other aspects somehow compensates for that.

“Nevertheless, I believe that good work has been done so far, which has put the foundations in place for further growth in the future to be possible. The hope is that, very soon, the club will win trophies too.”