West Ham’s Gianluca Scamacca on Roma links: “Mourinho would stimulate me”

West Ham striker Gianluca Scamacca has revealed that he would be quite happy to join Roma and play under Jose Mourinho, with his future at the London club uncertain.

Scamacca has been linked with not just Roma but with Milan as well. Juventus also made an enquiry for the Azzurri forward yesterday and it remains to be seen what the future holds for the 24-year-old.

Roma are attempting to sign the player on a loan deal and in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Scamacca revealed his admiration for Roma, Mourinho and Francesco Totti.

“Roma is home for me. And Totti my idol as a child. And what player in the world wouldn’t dream of being coached by Mourinho? I am convinced that Mou would stimulate me and with him I would improve even more.” 

He also stated that if he returns to Serie A, it wouldn’t be because he failed in England but because returning to Italy would be an unmissable chance for him.

“If I had to return to Serie A, it wouldn’t be because I failed in England, that’s not the case. Simply because it would be an unmissable opportunity. No, it wouldn’t even be a step backwards for my career: our league remains one of the best.”

During his time at West Ham, Scamacca has had fitness issues and in the interview, he revealed that he played with a broken meniscus throughout the campaign and very few know about it. After a point, it was not possible for him to continue playing.

“Maybe people don’t know it, but I played all year with a broken meniscus. Then at a certain point it was impossible to continue and I ended up under the knife. Until March, I played 27 games, scored 8 goals. It could have been better, but it could have been even worse.The Conference League win was a great joy for everyone: it was our passion from the beginning of the season. I didn’t play in the final against Fiorentina, it’s true, but of course I feel the Conference is mine. I scored 3 goals in the Cup in 7 games.”

Despite a disappointing first season – which can be attributed to his lack of suitability to David Moyes’ system, Scamacca’s stock remains high in Italy.

Kaustubh Pandey | GIFN