How Long Can Eusebio Di Francesco Hold On At Roma?

How Long Can Eusebio Di Francesco Hold On At Roma?
15:25, 25 Sep 2018

When AS Roma announced the arrival of Sporting Director Monchi, it was almost unanimously deemed as a major coup for the Serie A side. Through his work at Sevilla, the Spaniard had built a fearsome reputation as not only a wonderful identifier of talent but also a man who knew exactly the right moment to sell a player.

Cashing in when their stock was at its highest, the La Liga side always seemed to have a replacement for their departing stars ready and waiting, making Monchi almost a perfect fit for the Giallorossi. They too needed to maximise profits in order to strengthen their squad and compete with the financial might of Juventus and others, with Roma fans hoping that they could win trophies along the way just as Sevilla had done during his tenure.

His arrival coincided with some high profile exits in the Italian capital as Coach Luciano Spalletti moved to Inter and long-serving Captain Francesco Totti finally retired, but Monchi brought in Sassuolo boss Eusebio Di Francesco to fill the void. Young, tactically astute and, crucially, a former Roma player who understood the unique pressures brought on by the club, the city and their supporters, he was seen as an ideal fit.

Together they oversaw a huge overhaul of the playing staff which included the well-documented sales of Mohamed Salah to Liverpool, Antonio Rudiger to Chelsea and the end of Wojciech Szczęsny’s loan from Arsenal. It didn’t matter as, in true Monchi fashion, other players stepped up and shone as the team surprisingly reached the Champions League semifinals and finished third in Serie A.

Fast forward to today however, and things look very different. The euphoria of that deep run in Europe has evaporated and last weekend saw Roma capitulate in Bologna, losing 2-0 to a side that had not previously scored a single goal this term. Devoid of ideas and lacking anything resembling cohesion, for those who had been paying attention, the only surprising thing about the defeat was that it wasn’t really a surprise at all.

The obvious problem is that they simply sold too many players. In truth they lost just two first team regulars as goalkeeper Alisson followed Salah to Liverpool while Radja Nainggolan was reunited with Spalletti at Inter. The other departures such as Kevin Strootman, Bruno Peres and Grégoire Defrel were certainly not mourned by fans at the time, all three no deemed unworthy of a place in the side.

With the resources he has left, Di Francesco is struggling to build a team and is rightly coming under pressure. His job security is wavering, with the Corriere dello Sport reporting that the club has already been in touch with former Fiorentina boss Paulo Sousa, the newspaper believing that the Portuguese boss could well be appointed should Roma lose the derby against Lazio this weekend.

However, there is also clearly a case to be made for the cumulative effect of those player sales, the constant churn of talent as big a factor as any perceived drop off in quality. Blame for that clearly lies with Monchi who has, perhaps for the first time in his career, cashed in on assets without first ensuring he has adequate replacements in place.

Sweden goalkeeper Robin Olsen looks out of his depth, but unlike Alisson he was not given a chance to adapt. The Brazilian spent a season as Szczęsny’s understudy, meaning he already had a grasp on the Italian language and how Roma work before ever becoming a first-choice player, learning communication skills that are so vital in his role.

Having been a goalkeeper himself, Monchi should’ve known that and could’ve opted to retain Łukasz Skorupski, a Poland international who held Roma at bay last weekend as he kept a richly deserved clean sheet for Bologna. He didn’t, paying more for Olsen than he received from the sale of Skorupski.

While nobody who cares for the Giallorossi was sad to see Peres move on, Rick Karsdorp is certainly no upgrade just as neither Iván Marcano or Davide Santon are as good as Mario Rui or Emerson Palmieri.

In midfield it is the same story, as Bryan Cristante and Luca Pellegrini – who may eventually become excellent players – are not ready to assume the workload of Nainggolan nor be as influential in the dressing room as Strootman so clearly was. In time, Steven Nzonzi might, but that is a commodity that is becoming increasingly short at the Stadio Olimpico, and by the time the Frenchman has found his feet there, it might well be too late to save his new boss.

On Wednesday there will be a press conference where Monchi will sit alongside Di Francesco, Italian newspaper La Repubblica noting that the director will be looking “to protect his Coach.” Yet the sad truth is that, just 18 months after their much-heralded arrival and only five months after that glorious run to the Champions League semifinals, both men are clearly failing.

According to the oft-cited cliche, “Rome was built in a day,” but between them, Monchi and Eusebio Di Francesco have ruined Roma in a single summer.

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