MILAN – Christian Abbiati and a host of others were representing the club this morning at the event ‘Saranno famosi, la strada verso il successo’ (They’re going to be famous, the road to success) at the San Domenico Theatre in Crema.The event was organised in collaboration with AC Milan and the Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport and brings together high-school students from Crema. What’s more, journalists Nicola Cecere and Luca Bianchin were there acting as moderators.Joining veteran shot-stopper Christian Abbiati were youth team goalkeeper and local Crema lad Alessandro Plizzari while the youth academy chief Filippo Galli was also on hand with Milan tutor Alessandro Bolis.This is what the main protagonists of the event had to say:
FILIPPO GALLI"I arrived at Milan just after I turned 16. I have always put school first and I always made sacrifices for my studies. I have always been a rossonero fan. Combining school work with training allowed me to mature and grow up as a person. I used to go to evening school and I would do my homework in the mornings then I would get the bus to go and train and then I would go to school. Passion and desire help to overcome sacrifices. I was unlucky with injuries but Milan were always very good to me. I always worked hard and gave everything and it all came back to me when I played in the final of 1994. All of us have a talent, we must educate it and bring it out. All our lads have to be able to do this and the adults are also very important figures in all this. That is our responsibility. It is important to play sports, it teaches us how to be with others and the rules of the game. We know when a group is united when we all help each other and I understood this late on in life. This can help us grow a lot. We were a united group and we knew how to stay together. Maybe away from the pitch I didn't see much of my teammates but we knew what hard work was. We always wanted to improve, every day. That allowed us to win a lot, even if we had the talent. I have always been impressed by those who do their talking on the pitch. I was shy but my teammates helped me develop my character."
CHRISTIAN ABBIATI"When I was 16 I was a baker, I helped out my family. I used to spread my day between work and training. I went to work for a friend, I gained experience and then I found myself in this amazing environment. After 20 years at Milan they are a second family for me and no one can discredit the red and black of Milan. I owe everything to this club. I used to start at 6.30 in the morning then at 12.30 I used to go to training in Monza and I am happy of the sacrifices I have made in my life. I have been rewarded for them. You need to set yourself goals in life but they can only be reached with sacrifices, respect and education. I have a 16 year old daughter who does not play sport, she only thinks about her friends and school. It is difficult to make her understand the importance of sport, it helps you grow and learn to stay with other people. You cannot win on your own, only thanks to a solid group. Thanks to football I became a man very quickly, sport helped me so much and I was lucky to progress. Sometimes sacrifices alone are not enough to get to the top but I think you always have to persist and never give up. If you do that then there is the chance of going far. I have always seen lots of lads with unbelievable talent fail to make it. The mentality is always very important. I am an introverted person and being in a group forces you to come out of your shell and even when you don't have the courage to say your opinion you always have to stand up to others in order to improve. That has improved my character."