06/12/2015

Alberto De Rossi was left to reflect on what might have been after the Giallorossi Under-19s exited the end-of-season championship finals with a 1-0 extra-time defeat at the hands of Lazio.

“Our final ball let us down a bit tonight, although we did have three or four clear-cut chances that we could have done better with,” the coach told Roma TV after the semi-final in Savona.

He added: “The guys have had a great season even if they don’t have any silverware to show for it. We held our own both in Italy and abroad in the Youth League.”

Indeed, Roma Primavera were the ‘nearly men’ in 2014-15, reaching the semi-finals of the UEFA Youth League on their maiden campaign and the final of the Coppa Italia, before finishing top of Group C in the regular season of the Primavera championship and finally bowing out in extra time at the semi-final stage tonight.

“It’s been excellent,” De Rossi declared when asked for his  overall assessment of the season. “This defeat doesn’t take anything away from all the good things we’ve done this year. This is a fantastic, united bunch of kids – that’s the assessment we can make. It was great to see them train together and play together. They deserved to win a trophy but sadly it wasn’t to be.

“Tonight was emblematic of our season. We were the better side but they punished our first mistake and went on to win. Against good teams you pay for your mistakes. We were really unlucky.”

Unlike at senior level, where it’s primarily a results business, for the youth teams the main objective is player development.

The coach went on: “Yes, the first aim is of course to help these youngsters grow as footballers and lots of them contributed a great deal to the cause this year. But I’m still a bit annoyed that we finished the season empty-handed. It’s a real shame because the guys deserved it and so did the club.”

So a disappointing end to an otherwise very successful campaign. Our Primavera boys can be proud of their achievements. Well done, guys!