sport news ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Jose Mourinho must adapt as a coach or his Roma empire will ... trends now
Rome is a city which does not forgive mistakes.
There is heaven and hell, day and night, sun and moon. The swing of emotions is an historical feature of a city that has known the poetry of many writers and the flames of emperor Nero.
Jose Mourinho has many flaws. He can be arrogant, presumptuous and has a nasty streak engraved in the cells of his DNA, but he also has the gift of being a great character and communicator.
His charm is a magnet for players who dream of being coached at least once in their career by someone like him, Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola.
Jose Mourinho has plenty to think about after Roma's horror week in Serie A and in Europe
Mourinho's career was at a crossroads after leaving Tottenham, but he had an impressive start to life at Roma and won the UEFA Conference League last season.
Yet he risks going from hero to zero after a horror week for the club. Following a 4-0 defeat to Udinese in Serie A last weekend, Roma began their Europa League campaign with a 2-1 loss to Ludogorets in Bulgaria on Thursday.
The team have shown the same problems that the Portuguese coach inherited from his predecessor Paulo Fonseca.
Mourinho is well aware of the fickleness of Italian football fans and in particular of Roma fans. He knows perfectly well that they could bring down his empire.
Mourinho murals in the popular neighbourhoods of the city - that depict him riding a Vespa or in iconic poses - can be quickly painted over if he continues to get negative results like last week.
The Italian club lost 2-1 to Bulgarian side Ludogorets in the Europa League on Thursday night
It came after an embarrassing 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Udinese in Serie A last weekend
Ludogorets would struggle to survive relegation in Serie A, so the thought that Roma lost against them raises big questions about where the Italian side go from here.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the Europa League defeat, Mourinho showed his usual defensive attitude, denying the team's unresolved problems.
'I'm not saying we played well because it's not true, but it was a performance sufficient to win or at least not to lose,' he said. 'In these last two games, everything has gone against us'.
Perhaps Roma's main problem is precisely that. The denial of any bad performance so as not to impact team morale. But this was a second defeat in four days and called in to question Mourinho's ability to motivate his players.
There are Mourinho murals in the popular neighbourhoods of Rome, showing his popularity
It is difficult to imagine a coach so experienced who cannot understand the reasons for two poor results and now the fans are asking Mourinho to find a solution to avoid yet another disappointing season. His choices are always strategic but they are
