Tuttosport in this morning's print edition write that AC Milan are working on creating an Under 23 team with the lights off.
The organizational process has been underway for some time, with the Rossoneri strongly intending to have a second team to register in the upcoming Serie C championship, aiming to develop the future players for the first team in-house.
The example of Juventus Next Gen is evident, as is that of Atalanta, which, with its Under 23, is offering a highly respectable performance in Group A of the Serie C, currently sitting in fourth place with 37 points. This is the present reality, also because there are no longer those clubs that consistently field young players from major teams without significant economic gain.
To ensure that the various players who have debuted in the first team this season do not go to waste, Milan is determined to include its Under 23 in the sports department, to be played, indeed, in Serie C.
It would be the ideal laboratory for a clear talent like Francesco Camarda, who will turn 16 in less than two months and can sign his first professional contract - a three-year deal - to embark on a path similar to that of Matias Soulé or Kenan Yildiz of Juventus, who became players by staying at their home base without having to wander to some provincial club with the risk of ending up on the bench.
Juventus has many other similar examples, from Fagioli, Miretti, and Iling Jr, to various others like Nicolussi Caviglia, Huijsen, and Barrenechea.
On the other hand, the list of players that Milan could develop includes names that the public has already seen live this season: from Jan-Carlo Simic to Davide Bartesaghi (close to a loan to Frosinone), from Alex Jimenez - whom Milan will try to redeem for less than the 5 million euros expected from the summer loan with Real Madrid - to Kevin Zeroli, passing through Chaka Traoré and other youngsters like Adam Bakoune, Clinton Nsiala-Makengo, Dariusz Stalmach, Diego Sia, and the aforementioned Francesco Camarda.
The path would be more consistent, and the fact that the Under 23 could take the place of the Primavera at Milanello would make the development process even more organized than it is now with the Under 19.
Furthermore, in Carnago, a state-of-the-art building has been constructed to host the activities of the team currently coached by Ignazio Abate - who could be the guide for the Under 23 - with the possible relocation of the Primavera to "Vismara" due to space issues, although the new structure could accommodate both teams...
The Milanese club, with technical area executives and the new youth academy director, Vincenzo Vergine, will further explore the issue in the coming months, especially when it becomes clear whether the league reforms proposed by FIGC President Gabriele Gravina, aiming for a reduction in team sizes in professional leagues, will be implemented. If there is space, Milan will seize the opportunity to register its Under 23 in Serie C. In this regard, the possible playing field is also being studied, with Sesto San Giovanni, San Giuliano Milanese, and Busto Arsizio on the list of optionable stadiums.
The plan is in development, with all the necessary adjustments, but with a clear idea: Milan wants its Under 23 as a development territory, and the fact that Inter has, for the moment, ruled out this possibility only puts the Rossoneri in a stronger position for a project that is now no longer postponable.
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