Sorry folks, the proud moment will be over as soon as you read this article as we tell you the truth behind India’s Under-17 squad’s win over Italy’s Lega Pro squad and not their Under-17 national squad. Yes, we can hear the sounds of glass shattering as you read this but this is the truth behind India’s win. Although as sports enthusiast we are happy that India’s young guns are doing well overseas but at the same time, we have a responsibility to inform you as well.
The win of India’s U-17 football team beating Italy by 2-0 started making rounds on the internet as soon as All India Football Federation (AIFF) spread the news. on May 19. Twitter was flooded with celebrities and sportspersons congratulating the team as they hoped India have a bright future and might actually qualify for FIFA World Cup 2022 or certainly make advancements towards it. Even Virender Sehwag could not keep calm and wished the team in his own unique way. But, it was just a false report from AIFF.
The squad India beat comprises of players from Italy’s Lega Pro and Lega Pro 2 league clubs. They represent Italy Lega Pro U-17 and not Italy U-17 squad. The players belong to the leagues which are tier-3 and tier-4 of Italian’s football league structure.
According to Lega Pro clubs, Parma and Albinoleffe whose players were in the squad shared the reports on the match. Their Twitter handle reveals that India faced Lega Pro club representative team. But, AIFF ignored this fact and spread out false information.
@LGIcalcio ad @ArezzoCalcio. C’è amichevole under 17 @LegaProOfficial contro la rappresentativa Indiana. Prossimamente il report del match. pic.twitter.com/hlC9LBwqIC
— La Giovane Italia (@LGIcalcio) May 19, 2017
According to Indian Football governing body’s website, this win is supposed to be the ‘a historic moment for Indian football’ and ‘a brand new chapter in the Indian football history’ but it’s definitely not of that stature. One can also check Italian Football Federation where there is not mention of any fixture or result with India’s U-17 squad.
Take a look at the Italian squad against whom India won by 2-0. You can notice that they barely play for any renowned clubs who have made their names in leagues across the world. Here’s the full list of players-
Italy Under-17 Lega Pro squad:
Federico Brancolini – Modena, Edoardo Corvi – Parma, Francesco Micheli – Albinoleffe, Simone Della Morte – Lucchese, Davide Missaglia – Cremonese, Marco Ruggero – Padova, Antonio Vitale – Modena, Nicolo Maffini – Carrarese, Alessio Gianneschi – Robur Siena, Antonio Marrone – Juve Stabia, Matteo Bertollo – Bassano Virtus, Michael Fibiano – Juve Stabia, Alberto Maroni – Mantova, Alessandro Ramello – Alessandria, Alessandro Galeandro – Albinoleffe, Davide Rosso – Padova, Davide Rodolfi – Albinoleffe, Alessandro Davitti – Modena.
You will get a fair amount of the talent that Italy’s official Under-17 team possess after reading the name of players and the clubs they represent across the world. Here’s the list of players-
Italy Under-17 Official squad:
Simone Ghidotti – Fiorentina, Marco Carnesecchi – Cesena, Raoul Bellanova – AC Milan, Antonio Candela – Spezia, Matteo Anzolin – Vicenza, Davide Bettella – Inter Milan, Alex Campeol – AC Milan, Gabriele Bellodi – AC Milan, Andrea Rizzo Pinna – Atalanta, Elia Visconti – Inter Milan, Fabrizio Caligara – Juventus, Roberto Biancu – Cagliari, Hans Nicolussi Caviglia – Juventus, Emanuel Vignato – Chievo, Manolo Portanova – Lazio, Moise Kean – Juventus, Davide Merola – Inter Milan, Pietro Pellegri – Genoa.
An Italian football journalist Emanuele Giulianelli made it very clear rubbishing the reports as he told HT, “It is very strange because there is nothing about this match in the Italian media. This team that played India U-17 is the Lega Pro national representative, and not the Italy U-17 national team,”
Although we do hope that Indian football team achieves this feat in the future, and this time for real!
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