MILAN – Lorenzo Crisetig, the 23-year-old midfielder on loan at Crotone from Bologna, is set to find himself up against the team that helped him develop as a youngster, when the Nerazzurri take on the Rossoblu on Sunday afternoon.
The midfielder’s surname, which you could be excused for mispronouncing, comes from the town of Grimacco in the Valli del Natisone. The youngster’s hometown was also the birthplace of Pietro Fanna, who was part of the record-breaking Inter side managed by Giovanni Trapattoni.
Much like the quiet town of Grimacco, in the province of Udine in Friuli-Venezia Giulia and located right on the border with Slovenia, the softly-spoken Crisetig’s footballing career can be described as one of borderlines.
The midfielder is on the edge of the footballing wilderness, still having not reached the levels he seemed to be destined for. It must not be forgotten that back in 2012, he captained the Inter youth team which won the inaugural NextGen Series, a tournament featuring a selection of under-19 teams from across Europe.
He began his rise by spending a year at a football school in San Leonardo, very close to his hometown, before moving on to A.S.D. Donatello. These formative years were central to his breakthrough. The club located in Udine was known for having been a springboard for the careers of Massimo Donati, Simone Padoin and Andrea Petagna, and recently became an Inter development centre.
It was thanks to Renato Nardone, who ran Donatello, that Crisetig ended up at the club, one which can be considered a platform for talented players in the north east of Italy. The fact that Toto Di Natale and former Ancona player Simone Ronco took the reins is testament to that.
While wearing his team’s black and white colours, the young Lorenzo enjoyed being close to the goal. As he used to practise with his brother Simone – who stopped playing before reaching youth level – he would shift the ball with a swift movement and shoot. He liked playing in the hole behind the striker, a role which was demonstrated masterfully by Kaka at Milan, a club that Crisetig could well have joined.
However, Inter moved more quickly and decisively than their city rivals and Udinese, with Roberto Samaden bringing him to Inter’s side of the Naviglio. At just 14 years old, the youngster found himself in the footballing environment he had always dreamed of, surrounded by talented players and an approach that was serious and organised.
As part of the Inter youth set-up, Crisetig played with the Giovanissimi first of all, the team which won the league title two years previously, with a group featuring Joel Obi, Mattia Destro and Davide Santon. One could perhaps observe a resemblance to the Nerazzurri defender, who he is set to meet on Sunday afternoon at the San Siro.
Then came a slight change of role. The young midfielder was not blessed with blistering pace, so he began to occupy a position a few yards back. Thanks to the intuition of Nunzio Zavattieri, an Inter youth coach at the time, he began playing as an orthodox central midfielder, before his position became the fulcrum at the base of the midfield.
Here, Crisetig was at the heart of the team and on the cusp between the two phases of play. Following this slight tweak, the youngster experienced his first tastes of success. After the pre-season tour to America under Jose Mourinho, he was in the side which won the 2011 Coppa Carnevale youth competition. In that same year, he was called up to the Italy Under-21 team, managed by Pierluigi Casiraghi (he had previously represented the U16 and U17 sides, including at world level). Then came the triumph in the NextGen Series.
Those successes may have appeared to be the start of a rise to stardom. However, as mentioned, Crisetig’s career has been one of borderlines, a constant search for balance. Having come through the ranks at Inter, the 23-year-old has had spells at La Spezia, Cagliari, Bologna and is now on loan Crotone for a second time. It is in these colours that Crisetig hopes to make a name for himself once again.
