Mourinho: “We were always in control”

Jose Mourinho spoke after his side’s triumph over Slavia Prague...

Tell us about Edoardo Bove’s goal after only 43 seconds, which changed Roma’s approach for the rest of the game.

“It’s not often that you score so early on. We pressed really well from the outset, though. Stephan El Shaarawy made a good interception, then Edoardo’s quality came to the forefront, scoring a great goal from a lovely shot. It was important for us as it changed how the game may have otherwise panned out.”

On paper it wasn’t set to be a straightforward game. Slavia had scored eight and were yet to concede, as well as being undefeated since August. How did you manage to put in such a consistent performance throughout the game?

“We were aware that Slavia were great in possession. If you give them time and space to do their thing they’ll find free players and cause you problems. We thought that if we put pressure on them they wouldn’t be able to play their game, and at the same time we’d be able to capitalise on transitions after winning the ball back. We were adept at this in the first half.

“After the break our energy and intensity levels slumped. We’ve got players who haven’t played in a while which means that other players have been forced to play almost every game – I’m talking about Gianluca Mancini, Bryan Cristante, Evan Ndicka and Romelu Lukaku. These lads play basically every minute of every game, and consequently intensity levels tailed off. While Slavia had the ball in our half of the pitch we were still in control.”

What did you make of El Shaarawy in his role, combining with Lukaku as a forward duo?

“El Shaarawy can play anywhere. He’s a really useful player for us, because he can fill in as a number five, on the wing and as a second striker. This is really important for us, given that we’ve been stretched thin as a squad.

“I think that Slavia were anticipating that we’d line up with Andrea Belotti and Lukaku up front. However we knew that their right back liked to push forward when his side have the ball, so we thought that El Shaarawy would be a better choice in what’s a more natural position for him.

“He plays well when he’s got energy in his legs. He could’ve scored a fantastic goal today, which would’ve been one of many for him. I then took him off to spare him – it’s a luxury for one of our players to get the chance to rest.”

Given the absence of [Paulo] Dybala, are you thinking about playing the same duo against Inter?

“We also played the same duo in Tiraspol, leaving [Andrea] Belotti out. There are games where we think they are better for us. Slavia played with a back three tonight and they passed the ball round well. We thought it might be hard for Belotti to adapt to that style of play. Without a natural winger down the right, we moved [Houssem] Aouar out there, tasked with pressing. As I said earlier, when we have the energy, we try to be positive and proactive. I think we did that really well.

“As for Sunday, unfortunately we’ll be up against a completely different team. It’s one team on paper but there are two of them. We’ll be facing an Inter side that rested players, that played on Tuesday and that have two players per position, so they’ll certainly have plenty of petrol in the tank and play with real intensity. They’ll be taking on a team faced with so many difficulties. While watching the match from the stands, I would’ve wanted to make a change, but the five players warming up were [Riccardo] Pagano, [Niccolo] Pisilli, Joao Costa, [Luigi] Cherubini and [Francesco] D’Alessio. It’s tough and yet this is a fantastic experience in my career.

“Once the game was over and I went downstairs, Cherubini came over to hug me. It’s another player who joined Roma at a young age and I’m sure the whole of San Basilio is in party mood because one of its sons made his Roma debut.”

Inter next up. Will you have to manage Lukaku’s minutes or do you think there’s no need?

“Well, he needs to rest. I didn’t even play and I need to rest. I’ll go straight to Trigoria to try to get a few hours’ sleep and we have training tomorrow morning. Lukaku, who did play, has to rest. That’s what he needs to do.”

“Playing in a big game against a super side is a source of motivation for some. The important thing is to have the best possible conditions in place. Romelu needs to rest, just like everyone else.

“When I felt that [Bryan] Cristante had got injured, I was completely desperate. I’m sure my colleague Simone [Inzaghi] doesn’t see it as an ordeal when he sees one of his players get injured. For me, however, a small problem could become an ordeal.”

Has Radek Stepanek contacted you?

“Of course. He’s a tennis coach and he went to Paris for a tournament, but he’ll be there when we play in Prague. He’s a good lad who pulled off a miracle in the Davis Cup, playing three matches in three days at the age of 34/35, helping the Czech Republic raise the trophy. We got in touch after that and became friends.”