There was a time when Serie A sides paid exorbitant amounts of money for some of the world’s biggest stars to come and ply their trade on the peninsula but those days are long gone.
In fact, if you take a look at the list of the 50 most expensive transfer fees paid for players going to and coming from Italy, only seven of these deals have taken place over the past year.
Of these seven though, six of them were the transfers of Alexis Sanchez, Samuel Eto’o, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Javier Pastore and Ezequiel Lavezzi away from Serie A (with the biggest coming in to Italy recently being AC Milan’s acquisition of Ibrahimovic), showing how Italy’s sides are struggling to compete with others financially.
This is no surprise when you look at the current economic climate in Italy and football is no different from any other business during this difficult time and is suffering as a result of the tough times that are being felt throughout the nation.
However, there is one major benefit to the likes of Lazio no longer spending a combined €133m on just Hernan Crespo, Gaizka Mendieta and Juan Sebastian Veron or Inter spending an unbelievable €24.6m on Ricardo Quaresma, and that is that Italian clubs are now being forced to put an emphasis on bringing through many of the gifted young players that perhaps would previously not have been afforded the luxury in previous years.
When AC Milan were spending a great deal of money to bring forwards like Andriy Shevchenko, Filippo Inzaghi, Alberto Gilardino and of course, Ibrahimovic to the club in the past decade or so it meant that gifted young players who played in their positions were not being given the chance to break through.
Big money had been spent on these players and they were going to play and deliver on their promise. Some of their Primavera’s hottest prospects such as Gianmarco Zigoni and Alberto Paloschi were never given a fair chance in the first team as a result of this.
However, just now the Diavolo are just one of many clubs being forced to put their faith in some of their younger players given their need to try and comply with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules and this has brought great success to them given that 20-year-old Stephan El Shaarawy is the league’s top scorer with 12 goals.
Across the city, Philippe Coutinho, Juan Jesus and Ricky Alvarez are some of the younger members of the Nerazzurri squad who have benefited from their club too deciding to tighten their spending as is being clearly evidenced at the moment with the contract saga surrounding Wesley Sneijder.
This is further proof that Italian sides at all levels are looking to keep a closer eye on their spending and if that means parting way with world class talents such as the Dutchman in order to give youth players a chance then so be it.
In fact it is a risk that could well pay off because if you look at any Serie A side just now, chances are you will find a youth player (or two) thriving after being given an opportunity at a club that would likely not have been so ready to give them a chance perhaps 10 years ago.
Even league champions Juventus were accustomed to spending a lot of money on players, more so than any other club in fact.
That list of the most expensive transfers involving Italian clubs features no fewer than nine players moving to Turin to link up with the Bianconeri.
However, the last of these big money moves was three years ago when they signed Fiorentina’s Felipe Melo although the Brazilian flopped horribly in Turin and this season they have been more willing under Antonio Conte to give some of the younger members of their squad a chance.
Although not exactly ‘young’ players anymore, both Claudio Marchisio and Sebastian Giovinco came through the Juventus youth set-up and it is their example that players such as Paul Pogba (not exactly a youth product but still a young player at the club) and Luca Marrone will be hoping to follow this season.
Expect to see the likes of Stefano Beltrame from their Primavera side to make the step up before too long while other Juventus’ youngsters are making major waves all over Italy while being given chances.
Ciro Immobile, Frederik Sorensen, Nicola Leali, Manolo Gabbiadini and Richmond Boakye are just some of the stars being pushed into the first team for sides in Italy’s top two divisions due to clubs simply not having as much money to spend on transfers as they did previously.
Sorensen and Gabbiadini at Bologna and Boakye at Sassuolo in particular have really grasped the opportunity to impress with both hands and could soon be back in Turin for the first team in the coming seasons.
Look all over Italy and you will find examples of this happening at many clubs where you could name a success story of the youth team starring for their side.
Torino have Angelo Ogbonna, Napoli’s Lorenzo Insigne is finally being given an opportunity while Palermo are pushing Pablo Dybala forward and at Parma, Nicola Sansone is just one of many talented young players who is relishing the chance that has presented itself to him.
Roma also hired the perfect coach for their own particular need to monitor their budget very carefully. They are soon planning to move to their own stadium and having received planning permission to do so, the money that will be used to fund their new home will mean their will not be as much disposable income made available for transfers.
That is why Zdenek Zeman is so suited to the Giallorossi’s needs given that he is a coach renowned not only for attacking football but also for utilising young players he has at his disposal and Roma, while they have had many faults this season, cannot be accused of not giving youth a chance.
In fact they are perhaps Serie A’s best example of a club having such great success with a youth policy given the so far starring roles that Erik Lamela, Alessandro Florenzi, Mattia Destro and Ivan Piris among others have played this season for I Lupi.
Serie A may be broke money wise but there is a lot that clubs are doing to fix it and other leagues could do well to follow the example that Italy’s top flight it setting.
Italian clubs for years have ignored young players. I’m so glad that they are finally being forced to use them. Its most important that these young players are ITALIAN. In the past, Brazilian and Argentine youth had no problem starting.