With the new FIGC regulations set to be implemented in Serie A in 2016, it looks as though Italian football is set to be swept by change. The squad rules in question are simple yet significant.
Clubs must limit their squad size to 25, with a minimum of four academy players in each roster. Under UEFA rules, a player qualifies as a youth player of a certain club if they have been part of it for at least three years between the ages of 15 and 21. An academy player from a non-EU nation can only be registered if he is already resident in the country, if he has come to Italy with his parents for non-sporting reasons and been in school for at least four years.
The FIGC has stated that the ultimate outcome of these regulations is to “improve financial sustainability of clubs with consequent investment in national academies.” It is also clear that Italian football’s governing body is making a concerted effort at trying to promote homegrown talent. However, are the new regulations conducive for Italian football or are they merely moving the deck chairs on the titanic, implementing new strictures that are likely to hinder the progress of the sport in Italy?
If one thing can be said about the history of Serie A down the years, it is that the top teams have always been built with a formula utilising both homegrown players and foreign talent. For example, AC Milan in the late eighties and early nineties made very good use of the foreign stars at their disposal in Dutch trio Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard, who gelled seamlessly in a Rossoneri side that also included Italian legends Marco Baresi and AC Milan youngster Paolo Maldini.
The mind also wanders to the legendary spell of Diego Maradona at Napoli and how he energised a club and helped, as much as anyone, make them a feared power in Italian football.
Now Serie A clubs will be forced to promote academy players to the first team, regardless of their ability or keep them on the books because they are home grown.
Serie A president Maurizio Beretta welcomed the changes.
“These reforms are very important because they will enhance Italian football, our youth players and our grass roots system,” said Beretta.
“They have been in the air for many years. But we need time to put them in place and make them work. You can’t expect results from one day to the next.”
Critics suggest that by distorting the market, Italian clubs could end up spending more money to buy foreign players, as they have to pick them up later in their careers. If that proves to be the case, the regulations will be looked back upon as a poor move financially speaking.
With regards to the overall feeling, it is safe to say the reforms have not been embraced universally, with the Italian Players’ Association and coaches’ representatives voting against their implementation.
The new rules are likely to cause massive problems for several Serie A clubs, particularly the league’s lesser lights. According to a study published in La Gazzetto dello Sport, not a single Serie A club currently conform to the prospective regulations. In addition, Hellas and Chievo Verona do not have a single player who came up through their youth systems, suggesting that they will have to focus a serious amount of energy on unearthing a few gems from their grass-roots ranks very soon.
Although the FIGC’s intentions are both clear and honourable in wanting to promote homegrown talent in Italy and providing better options for the national team in the future- especially in the wake of Antonio Conte’s outburst following the Azzurri’s 1-0 win over Albania when he bemoaned his the dearth of talent being made available to him. However, there are definite concerns amongst managers and players that the regulations will do more harm than good.
Only time will tell if the FIGC, under the blueprint laid out by Carlos Tavecchio, will prove to be the saviour of Italian football.
Follow Matt Gault on Twitter: @MattGault11
