Why don't we have a Nico Williams in the Italian team?

WAITING FOR OUR NICO WILLIAMS

Why don’t we have a Nico Williams this time around? Instead of complaining about Di Lorenzo, who never managed to mark him, who drove him crazy, who embarrassed him, especially when he dribbled past him and crossed the ball that Calafiori then deflected into the net, we should ask ourselves why all the youth sectors of Serie A teams haven’t produced a player like that.

Or those few who did emerge, we mismanaged, left in the cradle until they grew a beard, and diverted onto desperate paths in the transfer market.

Regularly, at every European Championship and World Cup (i.e., when we don’t qualify with alarming frequency…), the story of talents who used to emerge from any parish field resurfaces, but today they are scarce. Instead, we are growing tennis players, swimmers, sprinters, or high jumpers… But good feet like this, no.

NICO WILLIAMS, THE YOUNG PLAYERS, AND PLAYER TRADING

I believe one of the problems is that the transfer market, as we have structured it in Italy, has distorted the work and organization of the clubs themselves. Except for a few exceptions – and among these, I would like to mention Juventus, which chose the path of an Under-23 B team playing in Serie C, now fortunately followed by Milan and Atalanta – everyone does player trading, just as they buy and sell shares on the stock market.

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ITALIAN VERSION

Perché un Nico Williams non ce lo abbiamo anche noi nell’Italia?

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Too few clubs are dedicated to youth sectors and guide talents in their development. Because it’s an arduous, expensive job, requiring investments, patience, planning, enlightened and specialized managers, and entire technical departments of absolutely essential instructors and coaches. In short, a hassle.

Napoli’s youth sector has been neglected for years, and perhaps only now, with the new management of Manna – formerly of Juventus – will it be revived. Not to mention that such work functions well in an integrated society, where the integration of new Italians occurs without difficulty and within families well-connected to the social fabric.

Di Lorenzo and Nico Williams during Spain-Italy 1-0. The italian defender lost the match against the Athletic Bilbao winger

NICO WILLIAMS IS A SYMBOL OF INTEGRATION

Generally, we are heading in the opposite direction, and unfortunately, not only in Italy but also in France.

Nico Williams comes from Pamplona and the Basque Country, from a Ghanaian family of emigrants who crossed the desert on foot to escape an impossible life and found refuge in Spain.

Two sons, Nico and his older brother Inaki, embraced by football. In Italian football, this path of integration seemed well underway; let’s talk about Balotelli – leaving aside how his story evolved – and all his troubles before becoming an Italian citizen despite being born in Palermo. Today, social tensions, poverty, and problematic integration have slowed this process. Meanwhile, club scouting has stumbled over algorithms.

Other sports are progressing more rapidly and surpassing football.

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LEGGI ANCHE

TUTTO IL CALCIO DI GERMANIA 2024

CARO DIARIO AZZURRO, L’ITALIA GIORNO PER GIORNO

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