George Weah has urged AC Milan and Italian teams in general to be more patient with the young players they produce.
La Gazzetta dello Sport begin a report by recalling that Weah will turn 60 in October. His most famous sprint – covering 85 metres in 14 seconds against Verona – is nearly thirty years old. Yet despite the Manhattan heat, the striker sprints almost as fast as he used to.
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He’s no longer a centre-forward, but a full-back (on the right) in a seven-a-side match between Italian legends and former MLS glories. It happened two days ago at the 3,500-seat Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium, a stadium commissioned by the former Fiorentina president.
While Roberto Baggio, Pirlo, Nesta, Ambrosini, Vieri, Pagliuca, Panucci, Zaccardo and Iaquinta were already on the pitch, Weah immediately responded to the call-up as he was already in New York for other events. He spoke to the paper abut the state of calcio.
You are in far better shape than many of the Italian legends…
“No way! It’s just that when you get back on the pitch and find such great teammates next to you, your desire and energy immediately return. I’ve played with them countless times, both together and as opponents. I’ve met up with great friends like Baggio and Panucci. It was a wonderful afternoon, I’m very happy.”
Italy missed out on the World Cup for the third time. How does that affect you?
“Italy is the country of football. Yours is a historic tradition, the greatest. But football, like all sports, works like this. There are cycles. I don’t have an explanation for the reasons, but I know there will be a great Italy again.”
Will you be a spectator at the World Cup?
“Of course. I’ll be rooting for Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil, the team I’ve loved since I was a child. And of course, for my son Timothy’s United States: my heart will be torn in two.”
Speaking of heart, what’s happening at your AC Milan? You won two Scudetti with the Rossoneri. Today, the climb back to the top is very difficult…
“As I was saying about the Italian national team, football is strange. All teams change, they evolve. In general, the level of the league has certainly changed.
“However, Milan remain under enormous pressure (George waves his hands to emphasise the point…) and the players need to be given time to adjust. Today, they have a young team that needs hard work and a lot of patience. It takes calm, but they will be great again.”
The team of the future could really use a great striker…
“What I just said actually applied to me too. I arrived at Milan at 28; if it had happened earlier, I probably wouldn’t have been ready. I discovered San Siro after years at Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain.
“I was mature and I knew how to seize the opportunity. Otherwise, I don’t know if I would have made it. This is what I say to Italians and to those who play in your league: you need patience, you have to admit your mistake.
“Too often I see kids benched after a mistake. But that’s not how it works; you need to give them time to work and grow. Not everyone is born a Lamine Yamal, not everyone is an instant star.”
Milan and Juve, Timothy’s former team, are the league’s disappointments as they missed out on the Champions League. Why?
“I repeat: you need a system that fosters growth. Certain successes don’t happen overnight, but are the result of a long process. Trust is the foundation of everything: encourage your players, support them.
“That’s what I tried to do with my son Timothy. Before joining the PSG youth academy, he spent years at Gottschee, here in New York. Then came the big clubs. To emerge, you need more than one chance. This is a generation of players and young people who can have a different mentality.”
