Daniele De Rossi lived the dream of all Roma followers, however he got here near following one other profession ambition.
The Italian World Cup winner is a legend at his boyhood membership, having risen via their youth ranks to make over 600 appearances in an iconic 18-year spell between 2001 and 2019.
4
Thought to be top-of-the-line midfielders of his era, De Rossi’s exploits with Roma earned him loads of admirers over time, together with Manchester United.
And the Roman has revealed that he even met with legendary supervisor Sir Alex Ferguson to debate a transfer, however was too shy to confess how simply eager he was to affix the English giants.
Showing on The Overlap, De Rossi advised United legends Gary Neville and Roy Keane of his long-time admiration for the Purple Devils.
He mentioned: “Once I was younger, I adopted somewhat extra Manchester United.
“I used to be fascinated by your [club’s] legacy. And I adopted soccer in England, I actually like this [kind of football].”
He continued: “I used to be near coming to England, yeah. It was my first possibility if I left Rome.
When probed on the English facet he would have joined, De Rossi mentioned: “It was Man United for me. I had some probabilities to go to different groups.
“However Man United was the one which I recognised. Once I was youthful, it was the perfect crew in England.”
The 41-year-old then recalled his nerve-wracking speak with Ferguson a few potential Outdated Trafford transfer through the 2006 World Cup, which he went on to win with Italy.
He shared: “In 2006, as soon as we have been within the airport through the World Cup, and [then Italy manager] Marcello Lippi known as me, he mentioned: ‘Come’. And I got here as a result of I used to be terrified of him.
4
4
“And he known as me and opened the door. He introduced me inside a small room and there was Alex Ferguson on this room.”
“He was flying from one metropolis to a different to observe the World Cup. He mentioned: ‘It’s important to go there [and speak to him]’.”
Aged 23 on the time, De Rossi then admitted that he discovered himself overawed within the firm of the 13-time Premier League champion, regardless of it being a casual chat.
He went on: “I used to be shy due to him, due to Marcello Lippi as effectively. It was scary. It was a three-minute second, nothing severe.
“However I’d have favored to say: ‘Sure, I wish to come, I wish to come!’, as a result of Manchester United, once I was younger, was one thing enormous.”
And whereas De Rossi would undoubtedly have picked up loads of silverware had he joined Ferguson’s all-conquering facet, he clearly has no regrets over his determination to remain at his native membership.
4
The previous midfielder received three trophies with Roma, together with back-to-back Coppa Italia titles in 2007 and 2008, and admitted he felt privileged to have lived out the dream of so many supporters and gamers.
He mentioned: “It is many different gamers [who have the same goal], and a few of them will not be ok to resolve to remain. Typically they go alone or observe different paths.
“However it’s a dream. Once you develop up like a Roman child, you dream about this.”
De Rossi bid farewell to the Giallorossi in 2019, and spent the ultimate 12 months of his profession with Argentine giants Boca Juniors.
He returned residence in January 2024 when he was appointed head coach of Roma following Jose Mourinho’s sacking, and led his facet to the semi-finals of the Europa League that season.
Sadly for De Rossi nevertheless, a poor begin to the present marketing campaign noticed him dismissed after simply 4 Serie A video games this time period.