Roma’s Mourinho faces daunting reunion with in-form Inter Milan

AS Roma coach Jose Mourinho reacts. [Reuters]

Jose Mourinho may have made his name in Italy by leading Inter Milan to an unprecedented treble, but his AS Roma side are far from those heights and in need of a big result ahead of the Portuguese manager’s reunion with his former employers.

Mourinho guided Inter to the Serie A, Champions League and Coppa Italia titles in 2009/10, a feat never previously achieved by an Italian club.

But Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat in Bologna was his Roma side’s sixth in 15 league games this season, and the Giallorossi go into today’s clash at the Stadio Olimpico as underdogs against the reigning champions.

Simone Inzaghi’s third-placed Inter are unbeaten in nine games in all competitions and the 2-0 midweek win over Spezia was their third in a row in Serie A, leaving them two points behind leaders Napoli and one off AC Milan in second.

Mourinho's main objective this season will be to guide Roma back to the Champions League for the first time since 2018-19.

But the fifth-placed club are six points adrift of the top four and have lost striker Tammy Abraham and right-back Rick Karsdorp to suspension after they picked up yellow cards in Wednesday's 1-0 defeat at Bologna.

“We must invent a team to play on Saturday,” Mourinho said after the game. "Well done to my players, because once again they gave it their all, even though they seemed to be up against everything and anything.”