If Paulo Fonseca was under pressure before Thursday’s Europa League semi-final clash with Manchester United, his position certainly looked untenable by the time Mason Greenwood slotted home the sixth of a thumping first-leg win for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.
As a result, Thursday’s return fixture at the Stadio Olimpico feels like little more than a dead rubber with Roma needing a 4-0 win to progress.
That 6-2 shellacking in England’s north west also preceded a 2-0 defeat to Sampdoria; a result that leaves the Giallorossi seventh in the table and 12 points off the top four.
News of Fonseca’s departure, then, hardly sent shockwaves through the Italian capital this morning.
“Over these last two years we have experienced a number of highs and lows, but I have always given my all for this club and this city – a city that has always been so welcoming,” the former Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk boss told Roma’s website on Thursday.
Fonseca will pack his bags and head for the exit when the final whistle blows on a serious underwhelming 2021/22 campaign.
The 48-year-old should not be out of work for long, however. This is a guy who has won nine trophies throughout his managerial career after all, earning plenty of admirers with his swashbuckling, free-flowing attacking style.
Italian reporter Tancredi Palmeiri told TMW last week that Arsenal had made contact with Fonseca, having identified the Portuguese as a potential successor for the water-tredding Mikel Arteta.
Calciomercato claim that Crystal Palace have also been in touch with Fosneca’s camp.
As have a Leeds United side who, despite their best efforts, have failed to tie down Marcelo Bielsa to a new contract.
Now, Fonseca might not leave Roma with a trophy, a top-four place or even a Europa League final to savour. But that does not mean he is walking out the door without the goodwill of everyone at the Stadio Olimpico.
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