Roma Had To Re-Sign Totti

The King of Rome will hold power over the Stadio Olimpico for one more season.

After much consternation and threats thrown about Francesco Totti and AS Roma came to an agreement on Tuesday. While Totti’s better days may be behind him the team avoided an ugly breakup by allowing the striker to finish his career on his terms.

Saying goodbye to players who have provided a lengthy service to one team is never easy. Very few players ever willingly retire and fewer get the chance to go out on their own terms. It is a sad fact of sports that for as much as supporters want the best players to go out in a blaze of glory that most go out rather quality.

The Totti-Roma agreement works for two reasons. One, it gives Totti the chance to do a victory lap of sorts. If there is any player in Serie A that deserves this it is Totti.

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Consider this: When Totti made his first appearance for Roma in March 23, 1993 thirteen of his teammates were not even born yet. Since then Totti has made 601 appearances for the club which is a club record and the third highest in Serie A history (Paolo Maldini with 647 and Javier Zanetti at 615 are the only too players ahead of him. Not too shabby). He has also scored 248 goals during his career, which places him in second place in Serie A history.

Second, given that Totti can still produce at a modest level (he scored five goals in fifteen matches for Roma last season) it seems to make sense that he should be given a send-off. Obviously Roma have to start looking at the future but if Totti can perform when asked it seems like a no-brainer that he should be given the chance to go out on top.

As evidenced by his two goals against Torino this season, Totti still has the pace and the scoring touch to deliver when called upon:

Had Roma said goodbye to Totti after a bitter divorce would have been bad for their public image. The man who earned the moniker “The King of Rome” from the supporters is loved in the city and has built a strong relationship with the club’s supporters.

Much like with Maldini and Zanetti, who played with just one club, it also makes it a bit more special that Totti can end his career with Roma. So many players look to finish their careers in other markets, attempting to regain glory while at the same time prove their previous clubs wrong. It almost seems wrong to see the likes of Steven Gerrard putting on a Los Angeles Galaxy jersey and failing to live up to the name.

Now the question will be: what can Totti give Roma in his final season? Despite all of the pomp and circumstance that will surround Totti’s final season Roma will have to remain focused. With the club looking to win their first Serie A title since 2000-2001 and having to play in the UEFA Champions League (Roma made the playoff round) this is a side that has things to play for in the coming season.

In his press conference announcing the deal Totti seemed confident that his club had a chance to deliver a second Scudetto:

"Obviously at the start of the season people draw up their predictions and it all looks very simple. We’re aiming as high as possible, though we know that there is a team stronger than everyone in Juventus."

Whether Totti and Roma can overcome a very talented Juventus side is up for debate. What isn’t is that the King of Rome will be given one more chance to be crowned a champion.

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