Mourinho involved: ex-Benfica man says career was tough | OneFootball

Nemanja Matic had a tough time in Roma. The former Benfica player explained that he only moved to Italy because of José Mourinho, the current coach of the reds, but a promised contract renewal never happened.

"I'll start from the beginning. When I left Manchester United I wanted a project where I could stay at least a couple of years. I had interesting offers, for three seasons, and I was not exactly a youngster," revealed the midfielder, to Sky Sport.

Matic revealed promises from the giallorossi, which ended up not being fulfilled: "Then came Mourinho's offer, at first I didn't want to accept it because it was only for one year. But then I spoke to him, with his agent... I stayed for him, for the club, for the fans. They told me 'sign and, if everything goes well, we'll talk about renewal in January'."

"At first it wasn't easy. Even in family terms we didn't have the necessary stability. I chose Roma primarily because of José. I think I played well and was happy. But in January nobody knocked on my door. I contacted them personally and they told me that if I played more than 50 percent of the games I would automatically renew at the end of the season, but that also didn't happen. It had been something we had agreed on the previous summer. I constantly felt under evaluation, but I'm an experienced player, who deserved more respect. In February I told them that I would give everything for the club until the end of the season, but then I would leave," admitted Matic.

"I think I always gave everything, at the end of the season they already knew about the decision and I left. The problem was the people who promised and did not deliver. I had no stability and did not feel comfortable with that feeling. I gave my best and felt good. I felt the affection of the fans, who respected me more than the club," he concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.