"We killed him" - Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho feels sorry for Roma star after 4-3 comeback win in Champions League
Jose Mourinho has stated that he feels sorry for Roma defender Mario Hermoso after Real Madrid secured a 4-3 win over the Giallorossi on Wednesday. Los Blancos went 3-1 down in the second half before scoring three times in the last 10 minutes to turn the Champions League clash on its head.
After Real Madrid made it two wins in two in Europe this season, Mourinho reflected on his return to Rome. The Portuguese famously won the Europa Conference League with Roma back in 2022, putting an end to the club's 14-year-long wait to lift a trophy.
Speaking about the threat provided by Yan Diomande on the right wing, Mourinho claimed that the forward 'killed' Hermoso with his performance. Konstantinos Koulierakis replaced Hermoso just minutes before Carlos Espi kick-started the comeback and Mourinho pointed to how even the Greece international struggled against his team.
Mourinho toldAmazon Prime Video Italia: "Poor Mario Hermoso, he had to deal with Yan Diomande for 70 minutes, we killed him. Then Koulierakis came on and I don't think he could do much about it either.
Real Madrid next face Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday before hosting RB Leipzig at the Santiago Bernabeu next Wednesday. Roma players were 'dead' after Real Madrid went 3-1 down: Mourinho In the wake of the 4-3 win over Roma, Mourinho has highlighted how his former team could not maintain the same intensity that helped them dominate the game in the first half.
The Portuguese coach admitted that Roma surprised him by using Matias Soule on the wing, which created problems for his team. However, Mourinho also added that when everybody thought the game was dead and buried at 3-1, it was actually the Roma players who ran out of breath.
He stated: You can say it was two games in one, Roma were superior in every aspect for the first, and then Real Madrid were impossible to stop during that 20 minutes. They surprised us at the start by using Matias Soulé on the wing, creating superiority in that area.
We conceded a ridiculous goal that you cannot allow at this level. After going 3-1 down, perhaps everyone thought the game was dead, but the only ones who were dead were the Roma players.
It is very difficult to play with this intensity and the style of football that they have." Real Madrid won the game after goals from Carlos Espi, Endrick and Antonio Rudiger, who refused to celebrate after scoring against his old club.