Paris Saint Germain’s midfield orchestrator Marco Verratti is expected to feature in a starring role under new Azzurri tactician Antonio Conte, and the prodigy’s early career move away from the peninsula is believed to be the strongest warning sign yet for the future of Italian football.
A diamond in the rough at Pescara, the 21-year-old has come a long way since his Serie B days; winning the French league, collecting several individual accolades, and highlighting Serie A’s need to hold on to its most promising assets.
According to Tuttomercatoweb.com, Napoli were interested in the sensation’s services prior to his switch to the Parisian outfit; while Juventus also tried their tricks in bringing what they consider the natural heir to Andrea Pirlo to Turin, but failed comprehensively, urging them to now reflect on their shortcomings.
Having signed a new deal extending into 2019, the midfield maestro has made a long-term commitment to the Ligue 1 club, which is quite surprising for an Italy international who has never once featured in Serie A itself.
Verratti’s situation serves as a warning for calcio, but the nation’s renaissance as a footballing force under a new-look FIGC is speculated to bring the phenomenon back home to Italy sooner or later; but more importantly, it presses on the importance of retaining such talents as himself and Borussia Dortmund’s Ciro Immobile within the peninsula and never having to watch them ply their trade elsewhere with a feeling of nostalgia and regret.
Bearing an uncanny resemblance to Pirlo’s playing style, Verratti made 74 appearances for Pescara in Serie B, playing an instrumental role in helping the side achieve promotion to Serie A whilst winning the Bravo Award for the best under-21 player in Europe, thus sealing a €12 million move to the city of lights and emerging as one of the finest players in Europe at the moment.
