Outgoing Roma captain Daniele De Rossi claims ‘If I’d been a director, I’d have renewed the contract of a player like me.’
De Rossi will leave Roma this summer after not being offered a new deal and while not ‘having a grudge with anyone’ at the club, the 35-year-old aimed a thinly-veiled dig at the board.
Outgoing Roma captain Daniele De Rossi claims ‘If I’d been a director, I’d have renewed the contract of a player like me.’
De Rossi will leave Roma this summer after not being offered a new deal and while not ‘having a grudge with anyone’ at the club, the 35-year-old aimed a thinly-veiled dig at the board.
“I want to play and there’s a minimal difference of opinion between us, but I don’t have a grudge with anyone,” he continued at a Press conference.
“I’ll talk to the President one day. I also don’t have any problems with Franco Baldini. I imagined myself bandaged up and them asking me to continue playing.
“It didn’t happen that way, but I have to accept it and move forward. If I’d been a director, I’d have renewed the contract of a player like me.
“I did well when I played well and resolved issues in the dressing room. If I was a good director, I’d have renewed my own contract, but I can’t do anything now.
“The fans have shown how much they love me through the years. I made the same choice in return.
“I didn’t change them for some hypothetical cup that you don’t know you’ll definitely win if you leave.
“There were three or four years when I had the opportunity to go to teams that were supposed to win more than Roma, but we chose each other and it would’ve been a tragedy if I said I’d have preferred to go elsewhere or if the fans said, ‘what are we doing with De Rossi? We’d prefer Iniesta and prefer to win more.’
“I still have true love for the club, and I think it’ll continue in different forms. I won’t rule out that in the coming years, they’ll see me sneak in with a sandwich and a beer to cheer for my friends.
“A small disappointment I have is that many times, I had the feeling that the team had become very strong, very close to those who were winning things, and then we took a step back.
“They are rules of the market: some can afford a car and others can afford only certain ones.
“I can’t blame the club for that. I won’t go into the numbers, but I hope Roma can become strong with the new stadium.
“Many players have left and after two months, they’ve called me and asked me to come back.
“People get used to other places, but it’s good here. It’s a hot place to play football and one more step needs taking.
“Having said that, we’re already a strong team with many young players from whom we can start afresh, and we’re a team who have a future.
“Something’s gone wrong this season, but let’s not talk about it today.”