Most Roma players thrived under Claudio Ranieri in the second half of the 2024-25 season and some are sorry he won’t be their coach anymore.
The opportunity to work with such a legendary coach was one to relish for Roma’s players, many of whom were enjoying the chance to learn from Daniele De Rossi but then had to deal with the mediocrity of Ivan Jurić.
The vast majority of Roma players have paid their own tributes to Ranieri either in interviews or social media posts throughout the season and after his reign concluded with a well-earned 5th-place finish.
Mile Svilar
“When Ranieri arrived we were in a tough spot. It was a difficult situation for us and the club. Mister Ranieri brought serenity and we are doing much better than before.”
January, Sky Sport
Gianluca Mancini
“Before the coach arrived, in the two weeks leading up to his appointment, if you remember well – and I remember well – the results were not coming. For us footballers it is difficult when the victories do not arrive, because we gave our all on the pitch during training, but the results continued to be lacking. The environment was not the best, and this made me feel sad, melancholic, almost with a knot in my stomach, both at Trigoria and in my private life, with my family. I do not know how to explain it, but when I saw the coach arrive and open that door, my body reacted on its own. He has a way of speaking, of explaining things and of making you understand every situation calmly. Of course, when he gets angry, he gets angry, but in that moment that serenity was needed to restore balance to a strong group, which really needed it.”
March, Sky Sport
Mats Hummels
“I respect and value [Ranieri] so much.”
March, Instagram
Evan Ndicka
“Since Ranieri arrived we have made a great comeback. He has changed many things, he was born in Rome, he knows the situation and the city. He is a really good coach. He also has that extra paternal side, he knows how to talk to you.”
April, L’Equipe
Zeki Çelik
“Huge respect and thanks to Mister Ranieri — he helped us believe again.”
May, Instagram
Alexis Saelemaekers
“I thanked Ranieri a lot at the end of the game [against Milan]. Since he arrived everything has really changed and he has helped us a lot.”
May, DAZN
Angeliño
“For me he is the best, he found me after a difficult situation and thanks to him I was able to improve and feel good again on the pitch. I like to play as a wing-back in Ranieri’s system.”
April, Sky Sport
Bryan Cristante
“Of course I dedicate [my goal against Milan] to Ranieri. The coach deserves it for everything he has done not only for Roma but in an incredible career. Tonight he deserves all this and we are happy to have given him a victory.”
May, DAZN
Leandro Paredes
“He immediately brought us confidence and enthusiasm that perhaps we lacked. I’ve been happy since he arrived. I had been through two very, very difficult months and he changed everything for me. He gave me the confidence I needed. And I thank him for that.”
December, DAZN
Manu Koné
“Thank you MISTER, I’m so proud to have been trained by you.”
May, Instagram
Niccolò Pisilli
“Ranieri helps me a lot. When he has something to tell me, he tells it to me calmly and with the utmost respect. Obviously, when he talks to me I listen to him 100%, because I can only learn from a person like that, for all the years he has spent in football, for the experience he has. So, when he gives me advice, I really pay attention to everything he tells me. In those moments I go back and review the situation he is talking about and we compare notes, as happens with all the others.”
May, DAZN
Lorenzo Pellegrini
“My relationship with him is a beautiful relationship between two men who look each other in the eye and tell each other the truth, we’ve done it several times since he arrived. I’m happy with the relationship I have with him, he knows how much I respect him and he knows how happy I am that he’s come to give us a hand. He always tells me this thing even if I don’t always understand it. I accept it from him anyway, jokes aside I think that’s my way of playing, I try to clean the ball to play it because that’s what I like to do most, put the ball on the ground and move it around, and many times I understand that being a little dirtier would be more functional in certain aspects. But beyond that I’m someone who likes to listen, especially if the words come from a person like him, there’s no doubt that I try to improve in whatever he asks of me.”
March, DAZN
Tommaso Baldanzi
“I don’t know what pill he used for us, but he touched the right keys. He brought serenity and play: he was a very important figure for us, for where we were and how we were. I don’t think there was really a key and maybe that’s the beautiful thing.”
May, Cronache Di Spogliatoio
Matías Soulé
“He reassured us about the bad moment we were going through. He told me: ‘Now that you know you’re in trouble, the only thing you can do is play simple, and then little by little better things will come to you.’ In January, Bologna wanted me, but Ranieri convinced me to stay. I wasn’t playing much, so I asked Ranieri what I should do and what he thought about it. He just said: ‘Don’t worry. Things aren’t going well now, but you’ll have your opportunities.’ Then at the end of the transfer window another offer came in, from Fulham, but they told me to stay here. Obviously I didn’t want to leave, but talking to Ranieri helped me.”
April, Il Romanista
Paulo Dybala
“With his experience, with the players he had, he gave me the confidence to be able to talk to my teammates, especially the younger ones, trying to help them especially in difficult moments.”
March, press conference
Stephan El Shaarawy
“It wasn’t the start of the season we expected. We’ve been doing better lately and with mister Ranieri we’ve found a bit more continuity.”
January, Sky Sport
Artem Dovbyk
“He seems a bit like our grandfather, he is very calm, but when the team needs to be encouraged and needs a jolt, he knows how to do it very well. He is an excellent psychologist, he knows what to say at the right time, he also knows when silence is more useful. It is very important, I would like him to stay on the bench.”
February, Il Messaggero
Eldor Shomurodov
“It’s a pleasure to work with Ranieri, we were together last year too. He’s very good at uniting the environment, now we’re a family.”
February, DAZN
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