Roma coach Jose Mourinho compares himself to Harry Potter

Roma manager Jose Mourinho called himself “Jose 'Harry Potter' Mourinho” and suggested he had raised expectations for what the club could achieve.

His comments came after Roma were knocked out of the Coppa Italia in the quarter-finals with a 1-0 defeat to rivals Lazio on Wednesday.

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Mourinho said he believed fans expected more from him because of his successful career.

“The Roma fans are the most incredible I have seen. Their coach is José 'Harry Potter' Mourinho and he has high expectations,” he said.

“I don't know how many derbies I have played, 200, 150, they are always special matches. I won, I drew, I lost, always with a different experience.

“I always understood that for a Chelsea fan, a match against Manchester City is not the same as a match against Arsenal. That for Inter, a match against Roma is not the same thing than a match against Juventus.

“I understand what a derby means. The derby we played was an important derby.”

Mourinho has previously made reference to Potter, saying he “is not Harry Potter” while manager of Real Madrid, in a bid to temper expectations.

Roma are four points behind fourth-placed Fiorentina in the race for a place in next season's Champions League and have also qualified for the knockout stages of the Europa League.

His contract expires at the end of the season, but he has said he is committed to the club.

“I have been here for two years and five months and I am the only person here who has not missed a single training session during this time,” Mourinho said.

“For me, there is no illness or bad mood. For two and a half years, I have not done anything wrong, not even a few weeks ago, when everyone was sick.

“I do not accept in any way that my professionalism and my dignity, my heart for this profession, can be called into question. If there is a perfect example of professionalism, it is me. I have never missed a match in over 20 years of my career.”.