AS Roma midfielder Kevin Strootman says he'll be forever grateful to the club for their support during his knee problems.

The midfielder had to have three knee operations, which saw him make just 11 Serie A appearances between 2014-15 and 2015-16.

“I renewed to stay at Roma (last season) for a long time," Strootman explained to Sky Italia.

“I have a deep gratitude to Roma, who waited for me after three surgeries, I will never forget that.

“This season we want to get into the Champions League, if that's fourth-place then fine, it's a shame though that we couldn't stay in the wake of Napoli and Juventus."