Coach Jose Mourinho hopes Servette will focus on the domestic league and play as a reserve in the match against Roma in the fifth round of Group G of the Europa League.
"What we hope is that Servette will focus on the league and only use the second team tomorrow," Mourinho said at a pre-match press conference on November 29. "We want to be top of the table, and we have to try to score a lot of goals. I know Servette started well at home, but maybe they are happy with third place. So we hope they are thinking about the league."
Coach Mourinho during Roma's training session at Trigoria headquarters, Rome on November 29. Photo: asroma.it
Roma are not sure of progressing as they are currently second in Group G with nine points, behind Slavia Prague on goal difference. Servette have four points, while Sheriff are bottom of the table with one point.
Roma and Slavia Prague have the same head-to-head record, with each team winning 2-0 at home. Therefore, if Roma want to go top of the table, they must win the remaining two matches to overcome Slavia Prague's goal difference, or hope the Czech representative stumbles.
"If both Roma and Slavia Prague win, everything will only be decided in the last round. But the important thing is that we have to win tomorrow," Mourinho emphasized.
Mourinho left open the possibility of starting Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku and revealed that Edoardo Bove will play the full 90 minutes, while Chris Smalling, Tammy Abraham and Marash Kumbulla are still out after long-term injuries. The "Special One" revealed that he will rotate some positions, but affirmed that Serie A is not more important than the Europa League.
"When you are at Inter, Real Madrid, Chelsea, you cannot think that one league is more important than another," he said. "That approach is unthinkable, unacceptable. I am not used to it and I do not want to see it here. If at the end of the season we have to make a choice, we will, if not, we will continue."
The 0-2 defeat at Slavia Prague in the previous round saw Roma miss out on an early chance to claim the top spot and lose their right to self-determination. Three weeks on, Mourinho is still not over the defeat. "It's unacceptable," the Portuguese coach fumed. "Apart from the result, I was in the stands that day and it was very unpleasant to see the attitude and lack of concentration of the whole team. The performance in Prague was bad and we just talked about it."
If Roma remain second in the group, they will have to play a two-legged play-off against a third-placed team from the Champions League, as they did last season. If they finish third, Mourinho's men will be relegated to the Europa Conference League, where they won the title in 2021.
Hong Duy
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