Fan View: Five supporters on pre-season, season targets and more

Roma fans unite in a roundtable discussion to give their thoughts on Mourinho, the transfer window, season goals, and even the next young star…

With the new Serie A season barely 48 hours away, we felt it was time to take the current temperature of the Giallorossi fanbase.

With so much having changed since the end of last season - a new manager, bringing with him a new approach and a number of new signings - we wanted to know what they had made of the performances in pre-season, and how they think the side is shaping up for the new campaign.

Here's what they had to say...

What are your overall impressions of where the squad is right now, following the completion of pre-season?

Nadette / @mrsduncanjames: “I’m very happy with the way the squad has presented itself so far. I’ve been following Roma’s pre-season more than I usually do, mostly since matches were streamed on RomaTV+. I’m enjoying the return of certain players such as Nicolo Zaniolo, and also the new ones - particularly Eldor Shomurodov.

“Passion is something which also stood out to me, particularly when playing against Porto and Real Betis. The leadership skills of Lorenzo Pellegrini and Gianluca Mancini also emerged here. I’m optimistic that the upcoming season will be a positive one.”

Sam / @Samuelrubio99: “My first impression is that the team already shows signs of Mourinho's hand. However, the work in the capital is just getting started. This young team is gaining in character and experience, and as Mourinho has repeated lately, they know that a win is possible in every match with the right mentality.”

Rick / @RomanistiNL: “Tiago Pinto has worked hard on improving the squad by selling a great number of players we weren't using anymore, freeing up budgets for some great new signings. The focus seems to have mainly been on signing attacking players, in part due to [Edin] Dzeko’s departure. Our defence could have used a bit more depth too, given the number of injuries we usually have during the season.”

Marco / @Marco_D: “Given the current construction of the squad I would say it’s nearly a complete unit that has cover in nearly every area of the pitch. When everyone is fit it’s a pretty impressive achievement to have such competition for places in all phases, and that fight for the starting XI can be a healthy driver of success.”

Wayne / @Wayneinrome: “There’s a few buzzwords in journalism like ‘unity,’ and ‘character,’ but they’re absolutely true so far. Not so concerned with the scorelines, the matches on the Iberian tour were an excellent opportunity to gauge our level. We bonded so quickly - getting a little better on each go.”

What do you make of the arrival of Jose Mourinho so far, and what impact do you think he will have on the club?

Nadette: “I believe that with Mourinho, the club will move forward; not just as a team, but also in terms of recognition. He attracts the media, he attracts fans from the Premier League and La Liga, and he also attracts significant football players, as we can already see. And all of these bring better results.

“I really admired Mourinho’s comment during his presentation in July, where he said, I don’t want ‘Mourinho’s Roma,’ I want a Roma for Roma fans. I am one more of them, that’s it.” This statement showed me just how much the staff and the owners value the importance – and opinion – of us fans, and I am proud to be a part of this.”

Sam: “I think it is already impacting all levels of the club and in all areas. I genuinely believe it was what the club needed the most, and the ownership nailed it. Mourinho is rapidly working to change the way the club is run, working together with the owners. This reinforces areas such as medical and scouting among others.”

Rick: “The signing of Mourinho has significantly boosted the morale of the fanbase. He knows how to organise squads and make them work for each other. Because of that the team really looks like one that will give everything for each other (maybe even a bit too much at times, looking at the red cards during pre-season). However, Romanisti are very opinionated, so this energy could quickly take a turn for the worse if the team doesn't perform.”

Marco: “So far my impression of Mourinho has been positive on the whole. The club seems to have been given a huge lift by his arrival with the majority of tifosi over the moon he’s the new manager. The players have responded incredibly quickly to him as well, and from an outside perspective it appears like the closest knit and happiest the squad has been in many years.

"Additionally, with his arrival the club has chosen to fully back him and bring in specific transfer requests of his such as Patricio and Abraham, so without undergoing the first kick of the season things are moving in the right direction under Jose.”

Wayne: “I was shocked and still find it a bit unbelievable. Given his calibre, I never thought about wanting him as a manager because I didn’t think it was realistic. I felt that we’ve always needed a manager like him - tactical yet filled with grinta, fills the players with belief, and one who could absorb the city’s pressure between the radio, papers and media.

"He shifts the negative energy onto himself in the public eye, yet holds his players accountable behind the scenes. A villain if you’re against us, a patriarch if you’re with us.”

Given no injuries, what do you think Roma’s best XI is right now?

Nadette: “Rui Patricio; Karsdorp, Mancini, Ibañez, Spinazzola; Cristante, Veretout; Zaniolo, Pellegrini, Shomurodov; Abraham."

Sam: “Rui Patricio, Karsdorp, Mancini, Smalling, Viña, Veretout, Cristante, Mkhitaryan, Pellegrini, Zaniolo, Abraham."

Rick: “Rui Patricio; Karsdorp, Smalling, Mancini, Spinazzola; Cristante, Veretout; Mkhitaryan, Pellegrini, Zaniolo; Abraham.”

Marco: “Rui Patricio; Karsdorp, Smalling, Mancini, Spinazzola; Veretout, Cristante; Mkhitaryan, Pellegrini, Zaniolo; Abraham.”

Wayne: “Rui Patricio; Karsdorp, Ibañez, Mancini, Viña; Cristante, Veretout; Pellegrini; Zaniolo, Abraham, Shomurodov.”

Which new signing are you most excited to watch this season? And which young player do you think could really break through this season?

Nadette: “I’m most excited to see what Shomurodov can do - not just because I know how much of a great football player he is, but mostly because I’ve seen his enthusiasm to play for our team. He has already scored two amazing goals, and I’m looking forward to see how well he can do in competitive matches.”

“I believe that it will be Riccardo Calafiori who makes a difference this year. We’ve already seen how impactful he was during the last season, and I look forward to see him grow and become one of the backbones of Roma.”

Sam: “I am excited to see Matias Vina flourish with the Roma shirt. He is a young left-back with already lots of football under his belt. Not many people might know of him, but he has already won Copa Libertadores and the Brazilian Cup, all while maintaining a starting spot on the Uruguayan National team - which is no easy task.”

Rick: “I am most excited for Abraham. We saw him excel in the transfer-banned Chelsea (which was a really nice squad).

“Ebrima Darboe showed some great talent towards the end of the last season. He might seem to have hit a bit of a slump during preseason, but he’s an exciting player to watch. Mourinho hasn't always been too keen on young unproven talent though, so we’ll have to see how much game time he'll be allowed this season.”

Marco: “Tammy Abraham will be incredibly interesting to watch this season, but there’s only one name that gets the Roma group chat going crazy and it’s Eldor Shomurodov. He’s an easy person to root for and during pre-season has become somewhat of a fan favourite among Romanisti for his combination of hard work, skills, and goals.

“We had a Cinderella story in the form of Ebrima Darboe coming through the Primavera with some breathtaking performances last season, so hopefully he continues on that path again this one. My young player to watch this year is someone who’s having a great pre-season, and recently received a full call up to the Polish National Team, is Nicola Zalewski. His combination of technical skills and eye for a pass has me excited for what’s to come from him.”

Wayne: “I can’t wait to see Shomurodov do his thing. We’ve seen just glimpses so far in preseason, and played most of his career in relative obscurity before moving to Genoa. He possesses such a unique skill set between taking players one-on-one, playing a clever ball, or exploding with pace - you simply don’t know what he’s going to do next.

“Edoardo Bove. Since joining the club almost a decade ago he became one of the stars for the Primavera before getting a taste of the first team this past May. I like what I’ve seen during preseason, and under Mourinho he could be crafted into one of Roma’s next great centre midfielders."

What’s one bold prediction you have for Roma this season?

Nadette: “I’m not usually a very optimistic person, but this season I’m really hyped. This squad has already shown us that it can do well, and that it won’t stop before it gets the results it wants. Therefore, I’m confident that Roma will be able to carry a cup home this season, whether it’s the Conference League or the Coppa Italia.”

Sam: “This is not very typical of me, but what the heck, I'll go for it! My one bold prediction is Roma gets a trophy this year, either Conference League or Coppa Italia (that badge on the jersey next year would be pretty sweet).”

Rick: “We’re going to win the first ever edition of the UEFA Europa Conference League!”

Marco: “That Roma vastly improves their goal differential this season. Last season we finished the year only with +10 differential and I think we could improve on that to +20. I believe that due to Jose’s more pragmatic approach, but added attacking power In Shomurodov, Abraham and full season of El Shaarawy the goals will still be there. Mix that with Patricio in net and a more balanced defence it could lead to a dramatic improvement in that statistic.”

Wayne: “They’re going to win the Europa Conference League, qualify for Champions League, and win against a few of the league favourites. Saying ‘Scudetto’ is fine by me - I’m not afraid of the word, and we can compete against any team. The pressure is on the northern clubs.”

What do you think Roma’s ambitions should be for this season, and what would you consider to be a successful campaign?

Nadette: “I think that the aim should always be to improve on what there already is, but setting the bar high. This season Roma are starting afresh, and being successful takes time. For me, it should be about solidifying the squad and building up the team with the aim of winning a trophy and making it to the top four of the Serie A campaign.“

Sam: “The greatest ambition has to be to win the next match, one at a time, approach every battle like a final, fight for every ball till the end, win the second ball, give that extra something; only then can we reach success. An approach to win every match on the calendar, then the results will arrive, without a doubt.

“I see Serie A a lot tighter up top this year; this is a great opportunity for Roma to return to the Champions League. I would consider a return to the biggest club tournament in the world a successful campaign for Mourinho and co.”

Rick: “Our ambitions should be to end up in the top 4 of the table. There's a lot of competition from the teams from the north, but with our quality we should definitely be able to leave some of them behind us. Roma needs to play in the Champions League every season. Both because we're owed it as a club of our standing, we owe it to the fans, as well as for the long term (financial) development of our club.”

Marco: “A new manager, even one as decorated as Mourinho, deserves time to find its feet. However, by keeping the core of our players together and the solid additions to the team we should be aiming to improve in the rankings, but not be disappointed if we fail to make the top four this season in what should be a fairly wide open and competitive Serie A. Change doesn’t happen overnight, and we have to trust the process ... If Jose can sneak in a Coppa Italia victory I’d be thrilled.”

Wayne: “It’s Champions League qualification. We have to get back to being a major force in European football. A deep run in the Conference League would be a great building block, and we must become obsessed about winning. I would still consider the season a success if we fail to qualify for the Champions League but make tangible progress with our style of play and chemistry, which would then set a sturdy platform for this young squad.”

Special thanks to Wayne Girard for his contribution to this article.

All the opinions expressed in this piece are those of supporters, and do not necessarily reflect the stance or opinion of the club.