The Italy U19 manager Bernardo Corradi has spoken about some of the AC Milan players that are showing their potential with his side, and also about the Milan Futuro project.
Italy’s U19 side won their second group stage game against Northern Ireland earlier this week to book a place in the semi-finals, given there are less participants and thus winning the group secures a spot in the final four, and there was a red and black tinge to the victory.
Camarda scored two goals playing against some opponents who were three years older than him, continuing his incredible rise. Kevin Zeroli scored again, and Vittorio Magni came on in the second half to assist Camarda’s second.
Davide Bartesaghi played at left-back and he impressed with his mix of technique and physicality. At the end there was also room for Diego Sia to come off the bench too, and it means there is a lot to be excited about.
Corradi spoke during an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport this morning (via PianetaMilan) in which he answered some questions on the Rossoneri’s influence on the Azzurini.
Francesco Camarda scored a quickfire brace on Thursday, but only got a few minutes the game before…
“He’s been pulling the cart all year between the Youth League, the league and a U17 European Championship as a protagonist that ended in June. So we gave him the right amount of rest. At this age you need to let your head loose a bit, they’re not robots.
“He joined us a week earlier, in perfect physical shape. Francesco is a valuable boy, his numbers are there for all to see, he’s fit in very well in this group because he’s already used to Primavera football and helped by the presence of a strong Milan block in the team.
“Some players his age today have everything right away and you tend to imagine them acting like greats, but he approached it with a lot of humility, everyone loves him. And then, if someone is good, you only notice the age difference up to a certain point.”
Lamine Yamal is a starter at 16 for Spain, but Camarda doesn’t even start for Milan…
“On this I think that the role and the environment where you grow up count a lot. Yamal has an enormous talent, born and trained in a system based for a long time on certain principles, who plays in a very strong first team where in his role at certain moments of the game you find yourself in a ‘one on one’ situation in full control of the game, and this makes it easier for you.
“A Yamal, but also a Simone Pafundi, have speed combined with technique that they can make count immediately in a certain area. Camarda instead plays the first striker, which is a very physical role and therefore you feel the gap more.
“You have to use your muscles, make the team move up, act as a vertex, go into the area and jostle with 30-year-old defenders from minute one to 90.”
What qualities does Camarda have?
“I remember Camarda’s debut in Serie A against Fiorentina, it’s emblematic: first ball out, he makes a perfect movement of a pure striker, he pretends to go long and comes towards the ball, he positions his body in the right way to protect it, Nikola Milenković arrives and with a hip move he moves him four metres.
“Well, maybe he still lacks the strength to withstand certain physical clashes. But he already knows how to slip behind the man very well, he moves well, he leans and starts again, he has characteristics that outline a path of success in front of him.”
What will his path be at Milan?
“I think the Rossoneri are managing him in a spectacular way. And that an experience in the second team, Milan Futuro, will give him further opportunities to accelerate the path that is leading him to assert himself.”
Will Milan Futuro help?
“I understand that they can be a significant expense in the budget, but every big club should have one. We saw it in Juve’s moment of crisis: 4-5 profiles came out of NextGen who then found themselves permanently in the first team. The same at Atalanta, I’m thinking of Matteo Palestra who spent a year in C and is now in retreat playing his cards.”
And what about Kevin Zeroli?
“Today’s football is a sport for athletes. Thirty years ago, if you didn’t have great physical skills but had technique, you played football. Today, no, attackers must know how to defend and defenders know how to attack, even those who are technically gifted must have non-trivial athletic qualities.
“Or are you like Pafundi, who combines the talent that the Lord gave him with extreme speed. And he too is working a lot on his physique: low centre of gravity, difficult to knock down… Pafundi deserves, like everyone, the chance to play and make mistakes, you only improve through mistakes.”
No, Lamine Yamal was touched by Messi when he was little. Rodrygo also touched Ronaldo’s leg to become great footballer.
Yeah you are smoking something. These players are no where close to resembling anything close to players like Ronaldo or Messi
That have nothing to do with their exploit at football please.
Talking like that will undermine their talent and hard work they did to reach their current height.
Relax, jokes aside, yeah still stick with CR7 quote: It needs Effort, Dedication, and Work hard, bc Talent isn’t enough anymore.
didn’t you see the latest news? Galliani invited Camarda to see and ‘touch’ the great legend van Basten and said ‘you might become like him’.. that was the pattern, right?
Yeah ofc i saw the news, it escaped me at that moment, and yes Camardi will be (not might be) a great footballer although he didn’t start for senior team rn.
And Camarda touched & hand-shaked Van Basten.
These guys didn’t understand what you were saying and I know ur being jokey. but they took it serious. They might not know of the pic of baby Lamal and Messi for instance 🤷♂️
Happens when u live in the Milan bubble
The coach explain beautifully how different a role Lamine Yamal and Camarda has.
Please, those that asking for Camarda in first team already, he is not yet ready – speed and technique yes, but strengthening and physicality – not yet.
After 1 or 2 years playing in Serie C, against adult and with no pressure to produce numbers right away (maybe with some appearances in first team against lower opposition), he will blossom, physically grew, and still with immense desire to prove himself in the first team.
Camarda is our future.
On another note – about Simone Pafundi, an 18 y.o Italian player that even have 1 cap at senior National Team – even Udinese thinks he is better with more minutes at another team rather than playing here and there at Senior team.
In 2 years he is playing 10 times with Udinese… it’s better for a young player to playing regularly than playing only 10 matches in 2 years.
To be fair Lausanne has an option to buy in that loan that runs out at the end of the year.
I do nevertheless agree with the assessments of the interview and your view in regard of yamal/camarda even though i think he will play a few minutes here and there against weaker oppositions if necessary.
Yes, I don’t really following Udine so I don’t know that.
The buy option is set at 15m though, doubt a club like Lausannr will buy that. But they are owned by INEOS so maybe it will be bridge before he join Man United…
I don’t think either that they would just buy and keep him for years to come but with a great season with them then they probably would be able to recuperate what they paid and some on top of that so I doubt that he will return to Udinese in January. He will probably stay with them until next summer and then get sold.