To present the 'Milan Futuro' with Daniele Bonera as head coach, Zlatan Ibrahimovic spoke to the media in a press conference at Milanello and said these words:
"Good morning everyone, welcome. We have officially made the announcement for Milan Futuro. We want talents to have a chance to join the First Team. With the previous system, Primavera and First Team, there was too much distance. A young player enters Primavera at 16-17 years old and is not physically ready for the First Team. With Milan Futuro, they will have more time to grow. Serie C is another level, preparing them to play against adults."
Ibrahimovic continued:
"Training with the First Team is very different compared to Primavera. Milan Futuro will play against adults, it will be very difficult. We need to find balance, this is also new for us. We are prepared and organized, everything is under control. We want to show that we believe in our talents and want to give them an opportunity to join the First Team. For Milan, the youth is important. Futuro and First Team for us is one team. Everything that Coach Fonseca does with the First Team, Milan Futuro will do as well. It's like copy and paste. Milan Futuro will also focus on individual training; we want to improve and make the youth grow into men. When you represent Milan, you have great responsibility. Discipline is also needed."
"There is distance between Primavera and the First Team: we are moving Primavera to Vismara for training. When you are in Primavera, you should not be near the First Team; you need to have the desire and motivation to reach that dream. In between, there is the step Milan Futuro, where our greatest talents will be. We put profiles that will be Milan profiles, talent alone is not enough. Fonseca is not afraid to give opportunities to talents and young players. We obviously do not place all the responsibility on these guys; there will also be someone with more experience: we need to find balance. It will be important not to take too many hits; we also need to win games. We bring in players with Serie C experience to maintain balance. We need to find the right path."
Ibrahimovic announces Jovan Kirovski:
"The responsibility of Milan Futuro will be Kirovski’s. He has played in various professional teams, coming from the USA. He worked with the LA Galaxy, and for us, he is a high-level profile. The coach will be Daniele Bonera. He has great experience as a player, having played at Milan for many years. He obtained his coaching license, was part of Pioli’s staff, and had a great relationship with the youth. He gained experience with the First Team, and for us, he is the right choice because it is important to have a communication relationship with the First Team. He has no ego; he must be open: when Fonseca needs something, he must be available and open to a dynamic situation. For us, the First Team and Futuro will be one team. We are happy and confident. Choosing a coach in this situation is not easy: Academy coaches think too much about results. They might choose more ready players over players with more potential: for them, career advancement is important. For us, it is important to have coaches who think about the players' growth: the merit of a coach is when young players reach the First Team. Welcome, Daniele Bonera."
The Name Milan Futuro:
"There were other choices, but we chose Milan Futuro because it’s important to send a global message. Whoever joins Milan Futuro will be the future of Milan. It’s credible, it’s the right name. I like it, it also works in English with 'future'-futuro."
Is it also a responsibility towards Italian football? Ibrahimovic replied:
"All of this is only positive for Italian football. It's necessary to improve Italian talent with an international mix. If you don't improve the talent when they reach the first team, the Italian national team won't be 'wow' in the European Championship. Individually, there was a difference with other national teams, then with the group, you can perform miracles. This project aims to improve talent; it's very important for Italian football. It starts from the basics; all clubs in Italy have a great responsibility to improve talent: how you work, what strategy you have, and where you want to go. Coaches in the academies think about winning; the Club thinks about talent: the club must set the direction."
Will Francesco Camarda need time in Serie C as well?
"Everyone thinks it will be easy, but it won’t be easy. At the beginning, he will struggle. We are here to protect him; the responsibility is ours. We need to give him time to grow step by step. We need to prepare him to reach the First Team. We believe in him a lot; he is one of those talents with great potential. It won’t be easy; we will follow him step by step. The idea for everyone is to always have minutes on the field; players must always have minutes in the game. If they don’t play in Futuro, they will play in Primavera; if they don’t play in Primavera, they play in U18. You grow more by playing in the game, not just in training. If you never play, you don’t grow; it’s important for us that everyone has minutes. Milan Futuro will have 22-23 players, like the First Team. Everyone must have space to play, not waste time."
Have you pushed to focus on young players?
"When I took on this role at Milan, I pushed hard for talent. It's not possible for Milan not to have a top-level academy. These are things you can't buy; you have to make investments and wait for things to happen. This doesn't mean the First Team will be full of young talents, but if we can bring some in, it's only positive. It's something we do not just for ourselves but for all of Italian football. I'm not saying that five talents will arrive in the first team every year. If it happens, I'll be happy; we will have done a great job. It's important to have players ready when needed. We are very motivated, and I believe in it a lot. But always with balance; I don't want the external message to be that we only focus on young talents. Today we are here for Milan Futuro; on Monday, we will talk about the First Team. It also depends on the players. We provide the platform and discipline; we have the responsibility to make them men off the field. When you wear the Milan shirt, you can't do whatever you want; it's our responsibility. The person also matters, not just the player. Those who doubted the club's ambition now see that things are happening inside the club; we are working. When we have something to say, then we will be here to talk, not to gossip or promote like gossip newspapers."
Is there a particular input that Gerry Cardinale has given you on this project:
"I talk to Cardinale every day. He takes Milan very personally. He listens a lot. He's very open to the ideas we bring. He wants results, obviously. He wants the club to grow and to bring results. Milan Futuro is one of these ideas to bring something new to the club. It won't be easy, but everything is under control. We're all with Bonera, all together to move the ship forward. It never depends on just one person; it depends on the whole organization. Cardinale is positive, very positive about how we work. But in the end, only results matter: here, the results must be to bring as many talents as possible into the First Team."
What will be the backbone of Milan Futuro?
"Simic, Zeroli, Jimenez are part of Milan Futuro. When you touch the First Team, it's important to stay there, not go back. That's why Milan Futuro will be important; here you will grow to go to the First Team. Because when you get there, you shouldn't have to go back; you have to stay there. Jimenez is more towards the First Team, the others more towards Milan Futuro. They have to go through this process to grow further; they can have more time to grow and stay in Milan. After Primavera, if there was no space, they would go elsewhere and it seems like we're wrong. But when you go to the First Team, you have to deliver results, because if you don't, someone else will. That's why Milan Futuro is important to us. In Primavera, they've now raised the age limit to 20. At Milan Futuro, they will have even more time, but for talents we believe in. The profile is also important. When I talk about the profile, just look at Milan's history, who has made history. We look for these profiles. Then if they're at the same level, we'll just be happy."
Monday's gathering:
"Now on Monday, the gathering starts, but many players will be missing due to the Euros or those going to the Olympics, it will be a bit of a mix. After America, we will have more defined ranks. But everything is under control and organized."
What are your sporting objectives?
"To give time for talent to grow, to prepare them for the First Team in this competition with adults. In Serie C, the game is very different; the boy still has the physique of a boy. When you duel with an adult, you can't make it. If you have a duel between Camarda and Brahim Diaz, when Diaz was there, Brahim wins because he's an adult. For all the other teams against us, it's a final; for us, it's a path to grow. I can imagine the first six months with a lot of effort, while in the following six months I see talent growing. With all due respect, ours are players who will grow, while those in Serie C follow a line."
Will the First Team striker also be taken into consideration for Milan Futuro?
"Camarda has already trained with us. Milan Futuro will be very close to the First Team; they will always touch the First Team. That's why they say they'll be one team, but still divided. However, they will always be close. If Camarda is then ready for the First Team according to Fonseca, then he will play there. Now there will be a number 9 missing in the First Team, then when the number 9 arrives, Camarda will compete with him. It's always about competition; those in Milan Futuro must have the mentality to compete with those playing in the First Team. Then there's reality, but the mentality must be this."
Why the choice of Jovan Kirovski? Is it your choice? What will be his role?
"He will be responsible for the growth of the academy. He will handle transfers and have responsibilities from Futuro downwards. We needed someone with our same ambition and vision, who speaks our language and shares our ideas. Not to say there wasn't someone before. We work at a high level and Kirovski works below us. The vision and what we want from players are important. I know him personally; I've seen how he works in America. If I didn't believe in him, he wouldn't be here today. We want high-level profiles in every area of the club, sporting and non-sporting. We want to be the best in everything. We want to do the maximum possible."
How do you approach the Youth League?
"Those who don't play in Futuro will play in Primavera. The Youth League is a great thing, but if you ask me if the Youth League trophy is better or bringing five players into the First Team, I choose the latter. The Youth League is like a mini Champions League; it's a great experience. We will mostly face it with the youth from Primavera."
On Francesco Camarda becoming Milan's number 9?
"If Camarda were ready, he would be our number 9 today. We believe in him a lot, but we have to protect him. But he has to do everything to get into the First Team. He has to do everything to grow and focus. We have a great responsibility. For the number 9 of the First Team, we will talk from Monday. The idea is to prepare the way for Camarda from today to get into the First Team, to grow in the game and in reading the situation. He moves well on the field, he's intelligent. Then of course there's the physique, another pace. Serie C defenders are tougher than Primavera ones. They won't respect him; they'll do everything to show he has nothing to do with Serie C. Then if they touch him, I'll enter the field to defend him (laughs). It's important to do things at the right speed, step by step. Not one step forward and three back. We shouldn't give him all the responsibility, but we believe in him a lot. Since July 1st, he has become a full-time professional. He signed the contract; he has to continue online school. Now everything is moving fast; it's important to keep both feet on the ground and make him a man; he's still a child."
Could Alex Jimenez be ready to be Theo Hernandez's backup?
"Jimenez will be Theo's backup. If he doesn't play in the first team, he will play in Milan Futuro, which is an advantage. A year ago, he wouldn't have had minutes on the field, now he can play and get minutes, which is very important. Taking Theo's place doesn't seem easy to me, but at the same time, we have to give him the opportunity to grow. Without Milan Futuro in training, you don't grow. To play, you have to be stronger than Theo, which is very difficult. With Milan Futuro, you can give him minutes. It's not Serie A, but he will grow. So yes, he will be Theo's backup."
The need for experience in Milan Futuro:
"If we talk about the Future and Serie C, it won't be easy for the youngsters. We need to bring in some experienced players to provide a foundation. If our young players get knocked around in every game and mentally lose all the matches, it's not good; you also need to win. So, we need to find a balance. The more experienced players will need to find balance, understand that at 25-27 years old, if you're not already in the First Team, it's difficult to get in. Messias was a miracle. It can happen, but they will have to be leaders and set an example for the talents, without ego. Having this balance is important."
It is said that FC Barcelona's 16-year-old right-winger, Lamine Yamal, would never have played in Italy:
"He would have played if he had a club that gave him space. I remember when Sinisa had put Donnarumma. The important thing is also the indication of the club, whether you believe it or not. In Italy, they want ready players, if you don't bring results, the coach changes. At Barcelona, they have another tradition, but they also play in a system, from the academy to the first team, where they always play the same way. I remember that you didn't see differences, just the name on the shirt. In Italy, when you bring a coach, you bring his way of working and his philosophy. Now we set the foundation and methodology, how we want them to work, what kind of growth they should have until the first team: then there will be the coach with his methodology. If you tell me that I have to throw Camarda in right away, then it's difficult to expect to win immediately: around Camarda there must be 10 phenomenons that protect him, but if the team is not so strong, he will have more responsibility and would not be protected as in Spain. So it's easier to push talent. But I hope that talents will arrive who will have the chance to play. Talent is always the future, that's why we chose the name Milan Future."
