Paolo Maldini’s remark about AC Milan’s youth sector did not go unnoticed by Filippo Galli. In an interview with the Corriere della Sera , the former Rossoneri captain pointed to the experience of his sons Christian and Daniel as an example of the problems in Italian football: "In Milan’s youth teams they only talk about tactics; if a boy has talent, it is a problem".
Those words directly involved Galli, who ran the Rossoneri youth academy from 2009 to 2018 and spent years as Maldini’s team-mate at Milan. On the blog "The complexity of football" hthe former defender replied: "Those statements concern me directly", stressing that the pathway had been built by a whole working group and through a collaboration with the Università Cattolica.
At the heart of it is Daniel Maldini. Galli recalls that Paolo’s son, now at Cagliari, came through the youth academy during a period of slower physical development than his peers. That could have penalised him if the only objective had been to win immediately. Milan, Galli argues, chose to wait for him instead: "Talent was recognised, protected and nurtured".
"I cannot explain how the same lesson, applied to a youth academy, can suddenly become ‘too much tactics’. Maldini never really dealt with the youth sector".