MILAN – There’s no one like us, and no youngsters like our own. The stats produced by Inter’s youth academy over the last decade are highly impressive and reveal absolute dominance at the Primavera, Berretti, Allievi and Giovanissimi Nazionali levels: 24 appearances in finals and 13 titles. No team in Italy can boast such an accomplishment, and it is a source of great pride for the Nerazzurri and a testament of just how important it is for Inter to have such an important and serious set-up for their young players. This success has been possible thanks to the club's excellent work, passion and long-term vision, previously overseen by Beppe Baresi and Piero Ausilio and in more recent years by Roberto Samaden. A model to be admired and followed.
The Centro Sportivo Giacinto Facchetti is the home for Inter's youth academy and leads the way in several areas. Within its 30,000 square metres surrounded by greenery, there is a school (which guarantees an excellent education for the lads), two regulation size grass pitches, two synthetic pitches, one pitch for goalkeeper training, two pitches for 7-a-side football (one grass and one synthetic), a gym, two medical rooms, 10 dressing rooms and a Club House, as well as offices and storage facilities. Furthermore, there are professionals on board – including coaches, fitness trainers, doctors, physiotherapists and directors – who have backgrounds specifically in football as well as in working with young athletes. The youth academy can boast having cutting-edge technology at its disposal, as well as the work of 20 scouts in the Lombardy region and another 10 in the rest of the country – all under the guidance of a general coordinator.
All of this close attention paid to youth has yielded fruit that is there for the world to see and has translated into a Nerazzurri dominance between 2003 and 2013 that has brought the following results:
Primavera (U-19). In the last ten seasons they have reached the championship final five times, winning twice (2006/07 and 2011/12), and reached the final of the Coppa Italia three times, winning the trophy once (2005/06). Furthermore, Inter won both of the finals they reached of the prestigious international Viareggio Cup tournament (2008 and 2011), as well as the NextGen Series in 2012 (the equivalent of the Champions League at youth level). If we look just before the start of the decade currently being examined, the Nerazzurri, then coached by Corrado Verdelli, pulled off a memorable double (2001/02 Scudetto and Viareggio Cup) and made history with what was arguably one of the strongest Primavera sides in recent decades, with players such as Erminio Rullo, Obafemi Martins, Goran Pandev, Giovanni Pasquale, Alex Cordaz and Alessandro Potenza.
Berretti. In the Campionato Nazionale Dante Berretti, which features players with ages ranging from 15 to 20, the Nerazzurri have reached three finals in the last decade, winning one in 2011/12.
Allievi Nazionali. Our Under-17s have got to the championship final on two occasions and were crowned national champions in 2007/08.
Giovanissimi Nazionali. The most successful ever: five finals and five victories in the last ten league campaigns (2002/03, 2005/06, 2008/09, 2011/12, 2012/13). They were the last group of lads to taste success when they best Roma in a penalty shootout on Saturday after overcoming AC Milan in the semi-final.
