ROME (AP) — José Mourinho is leaving Roma “with immediate effect,” the club announced Tuesday — ending an at times successful but also turbulent stay in the Italian capital for the veteran coach.
The move came two days after a 3-1 loss at AC Milan left Roma in ninth place in Serie A and at risk of missing the Champions League for a sixth straight season.
Roma was also eliminated by Lazio in an Italian Cup derby last week.
Mourinho was in his third season at Roma and his contract was due to expire in June. He led the Giallorossi to the UEFA Conference League title in his first season and Roma was a Europa League finalist last season.
But Mourinho was also given a series of bans for his protests and tirades against referees — which was clearly not appreciated by Roma’s American owners.
Mourinho was banned by UEFA from four European games for verbally abusing the Europa League final referee in a stadium garage after Roma lost to Sevilla. He was also suspended for the game at Milan on Sunday due to protests.
“AS Roma can confirm that José Mourinho and his coaching staff will leave the club with immediate effect,” the club said in a statement.
“We would like to thank José on behalf of all of us at AS Roma for his passion and efforts since his arrival at the club,” said owners Dan and Ryan Friedkin. “We will always have great memories of his tenure at Roma, but we believe that an immediate change is in the best interests of the club.”
Roma added that updates on the coaching staff “will follow imminently.”
Former Roma captain Daniele De Rossi is being mentioned as a possible caretaker, while there have been reports that ownership is trying to hire Antonio Conte for next season.
The 60-year-old Mourinho, who said last month that he wanted to extend his contract at Roma, could be headed to a club in Saudi Arabia or a national team position.
The Conference League title in 2022 marked Roma’s first European trophy in more than six decades. It was also Mourinho’s fifth European title.
Mourinho also won the 2003 UEFA Cup and 2004 Champions League with Porto; the 2010 Champions League with Inter Milan; and the 2017 Europa League with Manchester United — making him the first manager to lead four different clubs to European titles. He also coached Chelsea and Real Madrid to numerous domestic trophies.
But Mourinho’s defensive style is a struggle to watch and his expensive contract was a burden for Roma’s finances. The Portuguese coach, though, played a key role in luring standout players like Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku to join the Giallorossi — and a constantly soldout Stadio Olimpico for matches was attributed to his outsized personality.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/Soccer
Andrew Dampf, The Associated Press
