Press Conference: Everything Tiago Pinto had to say

Here is everything Pinto had to say…

After the Empoli game, Mourinho said, “I could have left but I stayed.” Did the club realise there was a risk of him leaving in December? Are you happy with the fee you managed to get for Nicolo Zaniolo?

“First of all, I apologise for the delay in announcing this press conference, but I don't think it's hard for you to understand that we were in the middle of negotiations that we needed to complete first.

“Regarding the first question, we were aware of what was going on and obviously we're happy he decided to continue because it means he believes in what we're doing here. Any other considerations are between ourselves, as the coach has stated publicly himself. They are topics to be discussed internally.

“As for how the Zaniolo talks panned out, you know me, I don't shy away from my responsibilities. If you're asking me if I thought we could get more for Zaniolo, then the answer is yes. That much is clear since a week ago we received an offer that was considerably higher. But with everything that's happened, this is the solution we ended up with, and in any case it is not bad for any of the parties. If you ask me if I'm really happy, the answer is that I'll never be completely happy. If you ask me if we could have done better, I have my doubts about that.”

After the Empoli game, Mourinho said that if he had played his first-choice side against Cremonese, Roma wouldn't have beaten Empoli. Fans often wonder: Are signings are always agreed upon by the coach?

“I think that's a lot of questions in one. The first thing I'd like to say is that, even though people often seek conflict between me and the coach, and it's normal for you to pick up on any elements of disagreement that emerge, we work every day for the good of Roma. We have lunch together every day. So there won't be anything in this press conference that makes it look like we're playing for different teams.

“Secondly, and this is not the first time I've said this, it is no coincidence that in the last three or four years, the team that ended up winning the title in Italy got knocked out of Europe early on. I think, and this is from an Italian perspective, a lot could be done in terms of the calendar to protect teams playing in Europe, and we see what happens to Atalanta and Fiorentina when they play in Europe. That is another matter that goes beyond any squad considerations. In such a competitive league as we have in Italy, it's not easy to play all these games because there are 38 league matches and midweek fixtures often throw up problems.

“As for our signings, I think I was quite clear on this in an interview I gave in January: from day one I always try to get on the same page as far as signings are concerned. Obviously none of us can say we have all the players we would like, because we all know the limits Roma have, the restrictions we are forced to work within, but we haven't brought in a single player without the coach's opinion.

“I always try to create this 'consensual' atmosphere, but that's not the same as saying that Mourinho or Tiago Pinto have all the players they want. That is not the case, because as things stand we're not able to do that sort of transfer business.

“Going into the question in even greater detail, I am not afraid to come out here in front of you and take responsibility for the players who haven't done well at Roma. To simplify your job: all the players who haven't done well at Roma are 100% my responsibility. We have our conditions, the restrictions you are all aware of, and we try to do our jobs well – me, our scouts, the coach – and obviously, being at the top, when things don't work out I take full responsibility. Perhaps I see things differently to you because there are players we sign to make a difference, there are players we sign to be reserves and there are others we sign thinking four or five years ahead. These things often aren't considered. Of course, journalists and fans make their own considerations every week.

“But to be completely clear, I don't want to hide behind anything. You often talk about [Matias] Vina and [Eldor] Shomurodov: they are 100% my responsibility.”

Are you happy with how the January transfer window ended considering the difficulties you had? If Zaniolo had been sold while the window was still open, would he have been replaced given that Shomurodov has left and Roma are perhaps short on attacking options with Ola Solbakken unable to play Europe?

“Objectively speaking, I'm not happy. In every transfer window I've come here and I have been able to state confidently that we had improved the team. Today I can't honestly say the same. We have lost three players and brought in two. We are all hoping that Gini [Wijnaldum]'s recovery will give us a reinforcement. I take responsibility for the fact that I can't say the same as I have after other transfer windows. But there are two other things to mention. The first is the Zaniolo effect – that was a pretty tricky situation to deal with. With the restrictions we have, if we had been able to sell him earlier, we had a replacement lined up that would have made everyone happy and would have improved our squad. But we weren't able to do what we intended. With the restrictions we have, it made the transfer window more difficult.

“I'm very sorry about the Solbakken situation but it just shows you that this whole FFP situation is not a joke but very real. I don't want to hide. I think sustainability is important for a club like Roma but it obviously makes it difficult to work in the transfer market. With what Bournemouth were offering, we could have done some important work to strengthen the squad. We weren't able to do that and I take responsibility but there were other things that I couldn't change. I'll be honest with you: regarding the first question, I can say I am not totally satisfied but as for the second, I can say that the importance of transfers is 20-30%. I have 100% confidence in the coach, staff and players we have here. There is a path we have to follow and we have what we need to do well until the end of the season.”

So if Zaniolo had accepted Bournemouth's offer while the window was open, you would have signed another player?

“Yes. I don't want to say who it is out of respect for him and the club who signed him but yes. We tried to arrange everything in a very short space of time. When Nicolo decided he wanted to leave, there were two weeks left till the end of the transfer window, but I don't want to spend the whole conference talking about Nicolo. When a player who was as loved as he was in this city decides he no longer wants to be coached at and play for Roma, I think at the end of the day we managed to resolve matters the way we needed to.”

Two players have contracts which expire in June: Chris Smalling and Stephan El Shaarawy. What's the situation with them? Do you think both will stay at Roma?

“Let me make a joke about El Shaarawy: there are times when it seems I wasn't the one who brought him back and others when it seems it was me. Now that he's doing well, it wasn't me! In any case, we're talking about two different situations here: until May Chris has the right to decide what he wants to do, while with Stephan it's the club that has the right to decide. I think both players are doing very well. We're in contact with Chris's agent about continuing together but I think everyone understands that the transfer window has only just shut and that now we will have more time to sort things out. Let's not forget the role that the footballer has in all of this – it's not just down to us. I think it's quite clear that we would like to continue together. We'll see what happens.”

So far you've mentioned Financial Fair Play restrictions three times and said that you and Jose Mourinho are on the same team. But listening to the coach's comments about the club's transfer business I see differences. Can you explain Roma's transfer strategy for the next few years? Will you have to make the best of a bad hand?

“It would have been a lot easier for a sporting director to sign players. It's not good for my image to come out here and always talk about Financial Fair Play restrictions and say it's not something I want to hide from. I say it because I believe it and because I have no doubt whatsoever that in three or four years Roma will be far more solid than it is now. It will wield more power in the transfer market than now. But we have to follow this path to get there. There's no other way.

“So when I talk about Financial Fair Play restrictions, it's not to hide behind anything or to defend my work: I'm the first person to say that it needs to be done, because when I leave Roma, more than any compliments or social-media messages, I want to be certain that I leave Roma in a better situation than when I joined.

“We must keep doing the things we're doing, without losing any of our ambition, because we mustn't forget that we've won a trophy and we're third in the league – we're not fighting to stay up. But we must follow this path.

“Another thing is you'll have noticed that no one in Italy did anything in the January window. It's not just Roma but the whole of Italy. Unfortunately it's very difficult to compete with the Premier League right now. So when you ask me if Roma will be able to move ahead of other clubs in future, it will be difficult. Because you can see that clubs in the bottom half of the Premier League table have the some financial power as any Italian club.

“That said, I firmly believe that if we do our jobs well with the owners and with UEFA, we can have a team that is able to challenge for big prizes, play in the Champions League and choose the players we want. Right now, however, we must follow this path.”

Is Mourinho aware of all of this?

“He was the first to know, when he talks about the transfer market, when he makes the considerations he made. When you look to accentuate this conflict, it’s because he knows about the restrictions. I’m not against the reasons behind these restrictions, but it’s clear that we must follow them.

“As I said, I don't want to talk about Nicolo anymore. However, him rejecting Bournemouth put us in a difficult position regarding our plans. We’re fully aware that we have to meet certain strategic objectives, and had he accepted that move we would’ve been closer to achieving these.

“Once again, thanks to both the footballing and personal qualities of the coach and the players, we’re managing to comply with UEFA’s guidelines, and we’re also enjoying success on the pitch. While we haven’t won the Scudetto we did win a trophy last season.

“If I wanted to protect my image I’d sit here and complain, make excuses, and single out players, but I'm here for the good of Roma. When the time comes for me to leave the club I want to leave it in a better state than I found it.”

Last summer Roma had many wide players at their disposal, but this season, after January, you have a lot fewer, be it for Leonardo Spinazzola’s injuries, the doubts surrounding Rick Karsdorp or Matias Vina moving on. Did you think the wide players in the squad were more than enough or does Financial Fair Play have something to do with this?

“You know perfectly well how the team sets itself up tactically. On the left we had Spinazzola, Nicola Zalewski, Vina and also El Shaarawy, while on the other side we had Zeki Celik and Ricky, who’s still here. You’re also aware that we don’t play with wingers, instead fielding players like [Paulo] Dybala, [Lorenzo] Pellegrini, [Cristian] Volpato and Ola Solbakken. I disagree with you that we’re lacking in this department.

“As for Vina, I spoke about him in public as the window was drawing to a close. We were in need of another centre-back since we play with three at the back. The squad only had four players in this position and we had it in mind that he could play in this role.

“However, in order to preserve Vina's market value and to rebalance the squad, we sent him out on loan and brought in a central defender with different characteristics, capable of bringing balance to the team. I don't think we’re lacking players.”

So is Karsdorp available?

“I think that's something we'll understand soon but Ricky is still here and the window has shut. The coach has spoken about this situation and, as I've always said, the best interests of Roma come first. I'm sure we'll soon see whether or not he will be available.”

You are the only club figure we get to speak to because the president has never held a press conference. I'll ask you a question that maybe I should ask the president: Why has Mourinho asked to have a meeting with the owners – if you can organise it and if there is a chance or fear that he might leave – if Roma don't get into the Champions League?

“Regarding the owners and them holding press conferences or not, the most important thing to underline is the investment they have made in two and a half years, and all the work they do every day to make Roma stronger and more solid. From the very first day they said they prefer actions to words. I don't think that's something to be criticised. I can tell you that most of the time I speak to you because I have to. Of course we have a duty to explain what we do and that is why we organise media conferences like this.

“As for a meeting with the coach, I don't remember him asking for one in public. We all have a good relationship and we often talk together. Jose Mourinho is Jose Mourinho – he's not any old coach and he doesn't need to ask for a meeting in public. I understand that this is a topic you might want to bring up but we have our relations and there are other places to talk about these things, which is not here.

“Neither myself, nor Mourinho, nor the players need any extra pressure over the Champions League. We all know that playing in the Champions League and not playing in it are two completely different things in football. But the team is fighting to win every game. We'll take stock at the end of the season but there's no 100% guarantee that qualifying for the Champions League will lead to scenario A and not qualifying for it will lead to scenario B. There are lots of variables in between that can change things. We're obviously disappointed to go out of the Coppa Italia but I think the team has done well. The players are doing well and they have the right attitude, with the coach motivating them. They don't need more pressure owing to the fact that if we get in the Champions League the future will be rosy and if we don't we may as well give up. That's not football.”

Getting back to Zaniolo, last summer you said that one of the first items on the agenda was Zaniolo's renewal. What didn't work out? Did a meeting ever take place? Were the player's demands too high? Did his request to leave in mid-January come out of the blue or was it a request he made last summer which never came to fruition?

“With all due respect, if anyone thinks, after everything that happened in January and before then, that he left because he didn't renew his contract then something really is not right.

“As I said, Nicolo was loved by this city like few others have been. When he gets to the point of refusing to play for Roma, and says he doesn't want to play for Roma, that goes beyond any negotiation or renewal. But I don't want to hide from the question you asked. If you look at the big teams in Serie A, how many important players have left big clubs on a free? Without naming them, there have been lots. Fortunately at Roma, there haven't been that many important ones. Obviously when you start talking about renewing a contract, there are always negotiations to be had. The player makes his requests, the agent does his job, there's what the club wants and then there's his performances on the pitch, Of course, even though we're still on good terms with his agent, we were never able to agree on those points. I'll end by giving you an example: I might think I can earn X amount. Maybe I think I'm very good and I should be earning X amount. But if one day I leave Roma and the only clubs who make an offer for me are Bournemouth and Galatasaray, maybe that should lead us to think that something is not right.

“As I said, I want to respect people. I accept criticism of my work. People talk a lot about contract renewals – and some players renew and some don't – but after everything that happened with Nicolo, coming up with the story that we reached this point because there was no renewal... I can't explain it better.”

What disappointed you most about Zaniolo's behaviour? And did you ever have the chance to sign Hakim Ziyech?

“Coaches and players write a club's history. I don't want to say that all of Roma's problems were created by Nicolo. Obviously, like all Roma fans perhaps, I was a little disappointed by his attitude, But now we have another page before us and Roma is bigger than me, than Zaniolo, than everyone. That's the most important thing to remember. I didn't want to spend the whole conference talking about Nicolo because we know how things went.

“As for Ziyech, since I'm not good at telling lies, it is true that we spoke with his agents and with Chelsea. He's not the player I mentioned earlier but he was a possibility. I'm sorry about what happened to him on deadline day because it wasn't an easy situation for him. But yes it's true: those who spotted us having a meeting with Ziyech's agents were right.”