Jose Mourinho has begun the mind games ahead of Roma's derby clash with Lazio on Sunday, taking multiple digs at their manager Maurizio Sarri's chain-smoking habit.
The Portuguese was speaking in the aftermath of Roma's 1-1 draw with Vitesse in the Europa Conference League on Thursday night. The result saw Mourinho's men go through to the quarter-finals 2-1 on aggregate.
In typical Mourinho fashion, the 59-year-old managed to both have a moan about the congested fixture schedule and insult his fierce Derby della Capitale rivals in the same sentence.
The weekend derby is a crucial match for both sides. Roma are seventh in Serie A, just one point behind Lazio in fifth. Ahead of such a huge game, the Special One could not resist reminding Sarri and his team that the Giallorossi are still playing European football, while Lazio are not.
Mourinho said: 'Obviously, I am not happy that we played today with many players who will also have to be there on Sunday, while tonight Lazio are home smoking cigarettes with Sarri, but it’s because Vitesse are really good!'
Mourinho returned to his theme of Sarri's infamous smoking habit later in the post-match press conference, saying: 'Now Sarri is at home smoking his cigarette while I go home trying to think how we can recover from this for Sunday.'
Former Chelsea manager Sarri is widely known for his significant smoking habit and was often seen in the dugout at Stamford Bridge chewing on a cigarette filter, before lighting up after the match.
The extent of Sarri's habit was laid bare when in June 2019 he told Italian press: 'I smoke 60 a day, which is probably a few too many.
'I don't particularly feel the need to smoke during games, but straight afterwards it really is necessary,' he said. 'I had back problems tormenting me for weeks, but I feel much better now.'
Sarri's commitment to his habit was so strong that former employers Juventus were angered that the Italian would not give up cigarettes even while recovering from pneumonia.