Primavera Champions invited to Inter HQ

MILAN – After a long and wonderful season, full of sacrifices, comebacks and celebrations, Inter Primavera won the tenth U19 Scudetto in the club’s history. After securing victory in the final against Rome and celebrating out on the pitch and in the dressing room at the Mapei Stadium, Cristian Chivu’s side were invited to Inter HQ to continue their celebrations. The players, staff, directors and coach Simone Inzaghi all came together for an aperitivo to mark the occasion.

Sporting director Giuseppe Marotta welcomed the Italian champions. “I want to pass on the congratulations and thanks offered by President Steven Zhang and the club ownership. As you know, the task of the youth academy is not only to win but to develop the stars of the future. Winning is something that you achieve through sacrifice, discipline and hard work, so coming away with this trophy is a source of pride, and doubly so, because it is our tenth Primavera Scudetto as a club. No other side in this league has won it that many times. We want to thank all of you and also everyone who helps and supports your development, so our thanks go to the coaches, Dr Piero Volpi’s medical team and coach Chivu. I’ve already thanked him many times and he has truly been one of the architects of this success, like other coaches before him such as Armando Madonna and Stefano Vecchi. It’s thanks to all the different bodies within the club, Roberto Samaden and everyone who’s helped that you’ve managed to reach this point.”

Inter vice-president Javier Zanetti was also full of praise for the youngsters. “You’ve shown a great sense of belonging, but knowing Cristian Chivu, Roberto (Samaden) and everyone who works with you as I do, I had no doubt about it. This club’s history means that wearing the shirt is a great honour. As sporting director Marotta said, the youth academy is essential for us, especially in transmitting the footballing values we represent. For this reason, I want to congratulate you on the work you’ve put in, the sacrifices you’ve made and the humility you’ve shown as you’ve overcome difficulties. You’ve demonstrated that you know how to come back from behind, like in the game against Cagliari, which was an incredible match. Congratulations to the team, to Cristian, the staff and everyone who made this achievement possible.”

Inter’s corporate CEO Alessandro Antonello underlined how much character the team had shown and the key role played by youth development at Inter. “The club would like to express our thanks. Welcoming you here today is important because you represent the future of the club. Everyone wants to wear an Inter shirt and you have done so with pride and character, as demonstrated by the belief and determination to not give up that you showed right until the end. We are making big efforts at the corporate level. We believe strongly in the youth academy and we ensure that the resources that we have available are put into improving infrastructure with dedication, care and commitment. Roberto Samaden and Beppe Marotta have sent a strong message through the creation of new infrastructure at Villa Clerici and Interello. We know that we can improve even more and that’s what we’re doing, but the important thing is that Inter have shown once again that we have the most prestigious academy within Italian football. We’ve won ten titles, the top prize available in the youth league, which is a great source of pride. We’ll hold on to this and the memories we’ve made dearly and hope that it will be a springboard for the future. Thanks go to Roberto, all the technical and medical staff and your parents who will have made many sacrifices to get you where you are today. It’s important not only to have a team and club that can help you but also families that support your dream of becoming great players.”

Inter coach Simone Inzaghi was also in attendance and he’s had a chance to get to know the Primavera boys during training this season. “I’ve already extended my congratulations to Cristian privately, but I also want to thank you all because during the season, you’ve helped in training by always being available. It’s been a difficult journey but you’ve always shown belief, even in the semi-final comeback. You’ve had an amazing season and you deserved to win based on the hard work you’ve put in all year. Congratulations everyone and to all those who have supported you.”

To bring things to a close, Deputy Chief Sport Officer Dario Baccin offered his congratulations too. “These boys have done incredibly well. At the start of the year, there was perhaps a bit of doubt; not everyone believed in the quality of this side, but the coach and staff have been amazing and done fantastic work. There have been some tough moments, but we’ve all overcome them brilliantly together. Simone is here with us right now and he has been around all year. I can guarantee you that he’s always been paying attention. You’ve had an incredible journey. For some of you now, it’s the time to head into senior football. I wish you the very best of luck. For the others, I’d say you need to keep going because this is a huge club and we need to represent it in the best way possible.”