MILAN – Roberto Samaden has called for Italian football to give more credit to its youth academies.
Appearing on SkySport24 the day after Inter’s Primavera Coppa Italia triumph, the Nerazzurri youth academy director declared: "Often in Italy we complain about the lack of young players but in reality we don’t do enough to help them. We have some fantastic youth academies and quality young players.
"We’re not succeeding in building that bridge between the Primavera and first-team squads. If we were to reform the league to make it more competitive and include reserve teams, that would help the many youngsters who aren’t able to make the step up. I hope we start giving more credit to the work youth academies do," explained Samaden.
"We made a clear choice to create a team of staff behind the Primavera that was identical to the first team. It’s not just about the coach, but also the fitness and goalkeeping coaches. They help with training intensity and player development, meaning that the lads are more in line with the standards of the first-team squad," he continued.
Samaden also made the point that players joining from other areas of the country or abroad need support more than any others: "Fabio Della Giovanna grew up in Lodi, then moved to Milan. The club and everyone around the players can really make a difference. You need to be sensitive enough to give them the attention they need, because many come from other countries, other cultures."
Finally, Samaden thanked the fans for turning out in force on Saturday: "I want to thank our fans on behalf of the entire club."
