The problems started before the season began, with coach Fabio Capello signing for Juventus, and key players Emerson and Walter Samuel departing. That Samuel departed to Real Madrid was greeted with disappointment, but the move was thought to be necessary given the financial struggles of Roma. The moves for Capello and Emerson in contrast, were controversial, with Rome's mayor Walter Veltroni even having to step in to calm feelings down, when Capello had decided to buy Emerson to the Turin club.
Controversy resumed when Roma signed French defender Philippe Mexès from Auxerre, despite a rolling contract. Auxerre took Roma to UEFA court, and in July 2005, Roma was suspended from the transfer market for a full calendar year. In the midst of chaos, new coach Cesare Prandelli decided to resign when finding out his wife was seriously ill (she would survive another two years before dying), and Prandelli returned to football with Fiorentina one year later.
Rudi Völler, formerly a striker at the club, and the man in charge when Germany reached the final of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, took over, but the German did not last long, complaining of a lack of organisation. Former Chievo coach Luigi Delneri, who had been sacked from European champions Porto in pre-season, due to spending too much time in his native Italy, took charge, but the squad lacked confidence, and the scandals and internal fighting caused Roma to slip into the relegation fight. Former club midfielder Bruno Conti saved the club from relegation, owing much to striking duo Vincenzo Montella and Francesco Totti.
A notable incident during the season was referee Anders Frisk being hit by a coin in a Champions League fixture against Dynamo Kyiv, as Roma crashed out of the tournament in its initial phase. Due to Roma's transfer ban, the club could not get rid of Cassano until January 2006, when Real Madrid bought him.
Players
Squad information Last updated on 29 May 2005 Appearances include league matches only No. Name Nat Position(s) Date of birth (Age at end of season) Signed from Signed in Apps. Goals Goalkeepers 1 Gianluca Curci GK Youth Sector 2004 11 0 12 Carlo Zotti GK Palermo 2001 14 0 22 Ivan Pelizzoli GK Atalanta 2001 72 0 Defenders 2 Christian Panucci (Vice-Captain) RB / CB Monaco 2001 110 4 3 Abel Xavier LB Hannover 96 2004 3 0 5 Philippe Mexès CB Auxerre 2004 28 0 8 Matteo Ferrari CB Parma 2004 35 0 13 Cristian Chivu LB / CB Ajax 2003 32 4 19 Giuseppe Scurto CB Youth Sector 2004 9 0 25 Leandro Cufré LB Gimnasia La Plata 2002 41 0 28 Aleandro Rosi RB Youth Sector 2004 1 0 31 Traianos Dellas CB Perugia 2002 44 2 Midfielders 4 Daniele De Rossi DM / CM Youth Sector 2001 51 4 15 Olivier Dacourt AM / CM Leeds United 2003 68 1 17 Damiano Tommasi DM / CM Hellas Verona 1996 236 12 20 Simone Perrotta LM / CM / AM Chievo 2004 30 3 23 Alberto Aquilani CM / AM Youth Sector 2002 30 0 28 Valerio Virga CM Youth Sector 2004 6 0 29 Leandro Greco CM Youth Sector 2003 1 0 30 Mancini LW / RW / AM Venezia 2003 67 12 Forwards 9 Vincenzo Montella CF / ST Sampdoria 1999 155 79 10 Francesco Totti (Captain) AM / LW / SS / CF / ST Youth Sector 1992 301 98 11 Daniele Corvia CF / ST Youth Sector 2003 16 0 18 Antonio Cassano ST / SS Bari 2001 113 37 26 Alessio Cerci RW / SS Youth Sector 2003 3 0 99 Mido CF / ST Marseille 2004 8 0 Players transferred during the season 7 Luigi Sartor LB / RB / CB Parma 2002 19 0 21 Gaetano D'Agostino CM / AM Bari 2003 22 1 24 Marco Delvecchio CF / ST Internazionale 1995 231 62 32 Vincent Candela LB / LWB Guingamp 1997 210 14
Transfers In Pos. Name from TypeMF Matteo Brighi Juventus (€16 million )MF Simone Perrotta Chievo (€7.2 million )DF Philippe Mexès Auxerre (€7 million )DF Matteo Ferrari Parma (€7.25 million )FW Mido Olympique Marseille (€6 million ) Out Pos. Name To TypeMF Emerson Juventus (€28 million )DF Walter Samuel Real Madrid (€23 million )MF Francisco Lima Lokomotiv Moscow (€5.7 million )GK Cristiano Lupatelli Fiorentina end of contractDF Jonathan Zebina Juventus end of contractMF Gianni Guigou Fiorentina end of contractDF Manuel Cattani La Chaux-de-Fonds end of contractDF Damiano Ferronetti Parma -DF Simone Piva Triestina loanMF Matteo Brighi Chievo Verona loanMF Adewale Dauda Wahab Ternana loanMF Daniele Galloppa Triestina loanFW Olasunkanmi Akande Ajide Venezia loan
Winter In Pos. Name To TypeFW Felipe Spellmeier Juventude loanDF Abel Xavier free Out Pos. Name To TypeFW Mido Tottenham Hotspur loanMF Gaetano D'Agostino Messina loanDF Luigi Sartor Genoa CFC loanFW Marco Delvecchio Brescia releasedDF Vincent Candela Bolton Wanderers releasedFW Olasunkanmi Akande Ajide Fidelis Andria loan
Competitions
Overall Competition Started round Final position First match Last match Serie A Matchday 1 8th 12 September 2004 29 May 2005 Coppa Italia Round of 16 Runners-up 19 November 2004 15 June 2005 Champions League Group stage Group stage 15 September 2004 8 December 2004 Last updated: 15 June 2005
Serie A
League table
Results summary
Results by round
Matches
Coppa Italia
Round of 16
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
UEFA Champions League
Group stage
Statistics
Appearances and goals
! colspan=14 style="background:#B21B1C; color:#FFD700; text-align:center"| Players transferred out during the season
Goalscorers NameSerie ACoppa ItaliaUEFA CLTotal19FWVincenzo Montella211123210FWFrancesco Totti123015318FWAntonio Cassano91111430MFMancini4105516MFDaniele De Rossi2114620MFSimone Perrotta3003713DFCristian Chivu200231DFTraianos Dellas110295DFPhilippe Mexès010111FWDaniele Corvia0101Own goal1012Totals5510469
Last updated: 15 June 2005
Clean sheets NameSerie ACoppa ItaliaUEFA CLTotal11GKGianluca Curci300312GKCarlo Zotti210322GKIvan Pelizzoli3003Totals8109
Last updated: 15 June 2005
References