Meet him as a boy and see him as a man again. What then, things fit together if the protagonist of the story is Roberto De Zerbi. One who as a boy was already a man and who as a man, and a coach, always has the charm of a boy. And its Sassuolo, second in the ranking, is in his image and likeness: bello and fun to watch, mature in his being. And who knew him as a boy is Carlo Pallavicino who, between ’97 and ’98, had the power of attorney of the then star of the Rossoneri youth teams: “But it was the fastest proxy of my career”. And for every self-respecting story, there must be a third character, one of those who can bend over backwards for the others, the classic who steals your heart for his altruism and generosity: Stefano Borgonovo.
How was the first meeting with the boy Roberto De Zerbi?
“I took him as a proxy between ’97 and ’98. At that time Stefano Borgonovo, who had stopped playing for some time, was thinking about what to do in life since he still did not have very clear ideas. things that occurred to him to do, since we were very friends, having had him for 10 years in the prosecutor’s office, there was that of putting me in contact with some boys from the youth sectors that he knew, because he was an observer. players. One was Saudati. And among them was him, the strongest of all: Roberto De Zerbi. ”
And what a boy he was, De Zerbi.
“Stefano played in Brescia, and De Zerbi had known him like this. And Roberto was the star of Milan Primavera, there was great curiosity on my part and the Branchini group to be able to take him on. Thanks to Borgonovo we managed to steal him from other prosecutors. , who had practically already taken him, and therefore we began to follow him. Also thanks to Stefano, who spoke to him, advised him “.
A special relationship theirs.
“De Zerbi listened to him a lot. I still remember that the two of them had an important relationship, so much so that De Zerbi considered Borgonovo to be his real agent, but in reality it was me who had to speak for him. I went to follow him to the Trofeo di Viareggio, where he even made the top scorer, with 5 goals. But he impressed me not only for his technical qualities, but also as a person, because he had a self-confident tone, so nothing that was said about him could explode at any moment, it made him fully satisfied “.
A perfectionist, like a coach.
“Yes, a perfectionist. He was in a great hurry to have to impose himself, to want to play the starter, also because he had played some friendly matches in the First Team in the preseason. He was on the launching pad. But we wanted to make him understand that he had to be patient. And I remember him. he was so anxious to explode, to make sure that his skill was recognized, that when he was sent to Monza to play, the situation was not easy. He was not convinced, he had big doubts. He was convinced that he could be an important player in the AC Milan’s squad. And I remember these discussions with him. “
And one, let’s say, was fatal.
“At a certain point I blurted out and said to him: ‘If you are convinced that you know how to do everything yourself, I think you don’t need an attorney and that you can do everything yourself.’ And he thought about it for a while and after a while … he called us off (laughs, ed). So he was one of the fastest players in almost 30 years as a prosecutor “.
Is there any regret of losing the power of attorney so soon?
“Yes. He was very nice, a Brescian, very direct, free-range in a good way, they tell you what they have inside you. He was witty, more mature than his age. And he had this impatience. And when he answered me like that, I stayed there for a while. … badly, and I thought again: ‘Maybe it was better that I didn’t say anything to him’ “.
A boy who immediately proved mature. Did you see that he would become a coach?
“The chats with him were chats with a mature person, not with a boy of 18. Even if he was in this rush of young people. He gave the impression of knowing a little bit of everything, and that made an effect. From Pioli to Donadoni , from Dal Canto to Zenga, passing through Corini, many of my players have become coaches, but I must say that the perception that he left me was of a boy who had ideas and a personality to be able to carry them on. As a footballer he had been unlucky , too many injuries: for me, without them, it would have been for the national team. ”
Yesterday he said that he only signs a one-year contract to feel free. Do you remember him like this?
“He is a free spirit, a free man. The only one who could keep him under control at the time was Stefano Borgonovo. The only one who managed to have a little influence was Stefano. And in fact I relied heavily on him. . Even Boban, who was one of our players, gave us a hand at the time to try to help him. Roberto, however, was in this hurry. And he wanted to feel immediately the protagonist, he wanted to feel like number 1. And at Milan, doing it immediately, it was a bit ‘ hard”.
We have said about the special relationship with Stefano. And De Zerbi, years ago, in 2013, in an interview, he declared that he never went to see him once he learned of the disease. “Some of them came up just to be seen, I never wanted to go into a situation where I could cause them some problems …”
“Many have also approached to advertise themselves, unfortunately. Roberto is right about this. It happens, in all things in life. Instead, many people who knew Borgonovo before the illness decided not to approach because they did not accept that condition. Stefano he was a person who had such humanity, such ascendete …. When we went to eat with all these guys, Nicoletti del Como was there too, he held the bench, he told a thousand stories, and these guys were fascinated by this champion. And seeing their champion like this … may have led many not to visit him. But it is a consequence of too much love “.
Where would you see him in the future? In which big club?
“I would like to see him at Inter, because he is a character who in my opinion knows how to capture the moods of the whole environment, who knows how to read environmental situations. And he has the strength to support a supporters who live in ups and downs on his shoulders. that goes to moods. He has the ability to absorb that tension that the Inter bench transmits, which historically lives both the positive and the negative to excess. Another square where I would have fun seeing him is Naples, where he played, because he has the gaze of a serene leader who knows what he wants. And in these squares there is a need for someone who has this approach “.
Maybe it would have been useful for Fiorentina too …
“Everyone in Florence dreamed of it, it is the great summer regret”.
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