The figure of Jose Mourinho is so controversial that it has caused constant shortcircuits in the environment surrounding him. In the last few weeks, his possible exoneration was a real hypothesis that kept hovering over Trigoria and yet, when the Friedkin family decided to send him off, his early departure was described by most as a 'resounding surprise'.

And yes, because no one would have ever expected that the ever-discreet Giallorossi managers would have had the courage to make noise by setting themselves up against a good part of the fans, including the loudest ones who have filled the stadium every Sunday (and often on Thursdays too) since the coach arrived in the capital.

However, ninth place in the standings and the excessive nervousness constantly surrounding the team, which exploded further after the derby defeat, have pushed those in charge to make a decision that is far from simple, but probably inevitable.

Special one

Let's face it, without the special one who is already thinking about his next move, Serie A loses one of its most important international draws.

Love him or hate him, what you just can't do is not talk about him. Histrionic, controversial and, all things considered, a winner, considering that he had arrived in a club that had not felt like a trophy challenger for too long.

And it is precisely for this reason that the Conference League triumph in 2022 and the Europa League final loss last spring (amidst controversy) represent a far from negligible legacy, to such an extent that few have dared to criticise him for not qualifying for the Champions League.

The fans have identified so much with their manager that they have adopted Mou's version, who has repeatedly claimed that he actually won two trophies with Roma because the penalty miss awarded to Roma in the Europa League final against Sevilla was an error that Uefa will find difficult to wash away - and which morally strips Sevilla of the trophy won in Budapest.

The Dybala case

At least in theory, the farewell of the Portuguese coach should allow the Roma environment to recover a certain normality.

However, for everyone's sake (Friedkin included), it is not worth taking a step backward towards the losing normality of the pre-Mourinho era.

That said, it has to be noted that American ownership has not been as absent as it might seem, considering that Roma are on the podium of the teams with the highest payroll in Serie A and that no one else in Italy can count on a pair of strikers like that formed by Lukaku and Dybala.

And it is precisely this that is one of the great challenges awaiting Daniele De Rossi, who has been called upon to understand where Roma have gone wrong in their management of the Argentine star, whose only solution of continuity he has achieved is one that has seen him constantly at the disposal of the doctors and not his coach.

One great love

Only time will tell whether the loss of international cachet that Serie A will inevitably suffer after the Friedkin decision will be matched by sporting damage for Roma.

From a social point of view, however, DDR's presence on the bench should keep the different currents within the Giallorossi fans united.

At least at the beginning: because there is already a faction that is eager to point out the practically non-existent experience of the former captain, who was exonerated by Spal on February 14th. This year's Valentine's Day, however, Daniele will live it on the bench of his one great love.

The same one great love who has told him in his contract that they trust him blindly, but only until June. Also, it is not necessarily the case that all great comebacks are synonymous with Guardiola-esque successes, as the adventure of his great friend, Andrea Pirlo, in the Juventus dugout showed.