AS Roma boss Rudi Garcia admits some regret declaring his title expectations this season.

Garcia has been asked almost weekly about his claim.

"Considering your obsession with asking me about this, I can say perhaps I suffered divine punishment for this sin of pride.

"However, if I said that, it was to counter an atmosphere of obsessive pessimism around Roma. It wasn't a stupid or ill-thought-out message. I think to maintain motivation and ambition, we need to do this.

"We won't stop at this season, but look beyond at Roma's future and challenging for years to come. This isn't to be completed in just a few days.

"It is true we have been unlucky this year with injuries, but we also made mistakes and nobody is perfect. I want to say next time someone asks me about this, I will tell them to get lost!

"Roma's destiny is to win, to challenge for the Scudetto and we hope one day in Europe too. We must prove ourselves ready for this destiny. With that phrase I wanted to give back pride to those fans who haven't won many titles."