Francesco Camarda has arrived in Salento and is already posing with the Lecce scarf. Medical tests are scheduled for tomorrow for the forward who joins from Milan. The 2008-born player comes to the Giallorossi on a loan deal with an option to buy, and Milan retains a counter-option to repurchase him.
Sticchi Damiani: `There was a queue for him`
Camarda, aged 17, is coming off a season where he played for both the first team and Milan Futuro (the U23 team) in Serie C. The forward made a total of 35 appearances, including 10 in Serie A and four in the Champions League. In Serie C and the relevant Coppa Italia competition, he scored seven goals and provided two assists. He also accumulated a decent amount of playing time in the Champions League, totaling 35 minutes. Now, a new adventure is ready to begin at Lecce.
Lecce President Saverio Sticchi Damiani commented on the signing: “It`s true, there was a queue for him. However, the boy is coming here, which shows excellent relations between the two clubs and their sporting directors. Furthermore, there is the belief that Lecce is the ideal environment for significant growth.”
And Italy Hopes for Di Francesco
As we mentioned, Milan retained the counter-option to repurchase the player to avoid losing him permanently. But it`s not just the Rossoneri fans who hope the 17-year-old finds a fertile environment at the Via del Mare stadium to start making his mark in senior football. Indeed, in a lean period for the Italian National team, football enthusiasts hope that the Azzurri might see a new prolific striker emerge under the supervision of the `craftsman` Eusebio Di Francesco.
Wherever the coach has gone – at least where he`s had a significant amount of time to work – one constant has been his ability to develop young players. This was evident even last season with Venezia. Consider the growth of Nicolussi Caviglia, who arrived as a technically skilled midfielder but needed to improve his leadership and awareness. After a season as a key player for the team (though it ended bitterly for the Lagunari), he is now a target for many clubs. Then there`s the case of Filip Stankovic: making his Serie A debut, Di Francesco didn`t hesitate to start him and showed confidence even when he was initially a bit hesitant, despite having a promotion hero like Joronen on the bench. There`s also Oristanio, whose development process was somewhat interrupted at a crucial point, and Idzes, who completed his maturation at 24.
In the previous season at Frosinone, similar examples are plentiful, notably Matias Soulé, who blossomed under the guidance of the coach now at Lecce. Others like Turati, Brescianini, Barrenechea, and Okoli also took flight after their time with the Ciociari. In essence, developing young players is a trademark Di Francesco has carried with him since his time at Sassuolo: Domenico Berardi, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Simone Zaza, Alfred Duncan, and Francesco Acerbi are some examples of players he enhanced while there. Therefore, Lecce fans hope, and with them, all lovers of Italian football.
