Mourinho brings memories and more controversy back to Rome in Champions League visit

ROME — José Mourinho left Roma 2½ years ago huffing and puffing over the referees after failing to qualify the club for the Champions League during his turbulent but also successful stay in the Italian capital.

Now he’s back to lead Real Madrid into the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday for Roma’s first Champions League home game in 7½ years. His ongoing laments and histrionics over the referees have prompted controversy in Spain and Madrid is struggling while rival Barcelona is soaring at the start of his second stint in the Spanish capital.

Mourinho didn’t show up for his mandatory post-match news conference Saturday after Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior had a goal dismissed and was sent off with a direct red card for pulling the hair of a Villarreal player in La Liga.

“I’ll say something so you stop asking me about it. Watch just the first minute of the Villarreal match," Mourinho said Tuesday. "That’s enough.”

The hair-pulling episode came after Madrid called for a new Spanish league president, arguing that Javier Tebas’ comments against the club regarding refereeing complaints were “intolerable.”

Tebas criticized the club for attacking the officiating crew in the 2-1 loss at Atletico Madrid before the international break.

After the derby, Mourinho took a piece of paper with photos to the post-match news conference, saying there were “two clear red cards” that weren’t shown to Atletico players. The Madrid coach then spent nearly five minutes complaining of “strange” things that have happened to his team this season and in the past.

Mourinho kept up his “strange” theme on Tuesday when asked about referee appointments.

“It seems very strange," he said. "Normally, referees are announced 24 hours before La Liga matches. Why do we know ours three weeks in advance? It smells strange.”

Perhaps Mourinho’s mood will get a lift in Rome, where he remains a beloved figure after leading Roma to successive European finals — a Conference League title in 2022 and a Europa League final the following season.

“For 90 minutes we're going to be opponents. But if they want to make a special tribute, well I also would like to embrace the Roma fans,” Mourinho said. "Before or after the match I'll touch my heart.”

Current Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini said he expected the club's fans to pay tribute to Mourinho before kickoff.

“It’s only fair. The fans really loved him so he deserves whatever tribute they give him," Gasperini said. "But once the match starts, I think they’ll forget those feelings and Rome’s people will cheer exclusively for their squad.”

Mourinho's current state could also bring back memories of more clashes with the officiating crews.

Mourinho was suspended by UEFA from four European games for verbally abusing the Europa League final referee in a stadium garage after Roma lost the 2023 final to Sevilla. He was also suspended for his final game at Roma against AC Milan in January 2024.

The last time Roma had a home game in the Champions League was against Porto in the round of 16 in February 2019. Roma won 2-1 but then lost the return leg 3-1 and was eliminated on 4-3 aggregate.

It's the second straight Champions League match that Mourinho is facing one of his former Italian clubs, after Madrid hung on for a 2-1 win over Inter Milan last month after scoring two early goals.

Gasperini is the anti-Mourinho

Gasperini achieved in one season what Mourinho couldn’t over three when he coached Roma to a top-four finish during his first campaign with the Giallorossi.

Having moved on after a successful nine-year stay at Atalanta, Gasperini has developed Roma into an attack-minded unit that is the antithesis of Mourinho’s defensive-minded teams.

“José left people with amazing memories and a deep affection for him as a coach,” Gasperini said. “However ours is a different sort of team now — very different from the one that played under Mourinho — even though it hasn’t been that many years.”

Donyell Malen leads Serie A with six goals in six matches and will be looking for redemption after picking up the first red card of his career on Sunday in a 0-0 draw with fellow Champions League side Como.

Malen went on as a second-half substitute for Borussia Dortmund when Madrid beat the German club in the 2024 final for its record-extending 15th Champions League title.

Mbappe set to beat Messi's century mark

The match at the Stadio Olimpico will also likely mark the 100th Champions League appearance for Kylian Mbappé, who at 27 would become the youngest player to reach the century mark in the competition.

Lionel Messi set the current record at 28 against Roma in September 2015.