Gonzalo Villar has launched a scathing attack on AS Roma boss Jose Mourinho and accused the former Chelsea chief of ruining his spell with the Italian club.
Villar, 24, moved to Rome from Elche back in 2020 and was a regular during the 2020/21 campaign, where he clocked up 47 appearances in all competitions. But since then, the midfielder has found his first-team opportunities limited under Mourinho, who was appointed back in May 2021.
A lack of game-time has forced Villar to pursue new opportunities elsewhere. Following an underwhelming stint at Sampdoria, the playmaker is once again on loan at Getafe, where he spent the second half of last season.
While Villar is currently happy in LaLiga, he has now broken his silence over his Roma ordeal. And although he doesn't specifically mention Mourinho, it's clear that he blames the Portuguese chief for freezing him out.
"It was a fantastic experience at Roma, up until a person arrived that we all know,” Villar told COPE. "I don’t want to talk about him, I prefer to stay quiet. After his arrival, my adventure with Roma was interrupted and that took me into some difficult situations."
Villar went on to explain some of the difficulties behind his brief stint with Sampdoria, which he branded as the "most difficult situation" he's faced in football. His long-term future is not clear, although Getafe do have an option to purchase him for €3.5million (£3.1m).
It remains to be seen if Mourinho will face any sort of backlash in the wake of Villar's damning comments after guiding the club to Europa Conference League glory in his first season at the helm.
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The 59-year-old remains a popular figure in Rome off the back of that success - however, doubts over his own future have emerged in recent weeks. Mourinho has been linked with both Brazil and Portugal in recent weeks and it has also been claimed that the former Tottenham boss is not happy with how his second season at the club is panning out.
But Roma director Tiago Pinto has played down talk of interest in Mourinho and admitted that the club has to be prepared for speculation due to the calibre of their boss, who has won major trophies all around the globe.
Pinto told La Gazzetta dello Sport earlier this month: "When you get a coach like Mourinho, you must be accustomed to rumours. This was the first time in 18 months that a club or a Federation were interested in him.
"We had no distractions in Algarve, we were only focused on work. I am Portuguese and every time we change coach, Mourinho is mentioned, but we count on him for the future."
