A deserved and (above all) long-awaited revenge. It’s the one that Nicola Campedelli took last Saturday, coach of a Primavera team that this year has chosen to imitate the “big boys”: winning the championship by a landslide and celebrating promotion at home. The jump to Primavera 1 is a juicy revenge for one of the many sons of Cavalluccio’s youth sector, who previously had never been very lucky with Cesena: in the two years as a footballer, Campedelli had always been relegated to Serie C (first in 2000 and then in 2008), while as first team coach his experience had lasted just three games, when his brother Igor first chose him surprisingly and then sacked him on the third matchday in 2012.
Campedelli, can we finally talk about revenge?
«It’s not a revenge, I would say more of an enormous satisfaction, which I’ve been waiting for for a long time. As a first team coach I could have done better, but I was young and still inexperienced, while as a footballer I was very unlucky: the first year on a personal level was positive, I scored 4 goals, the Under 21s called me, but unfortunately I was relegated daring after the play-off against Pistoiese. Then there was the most painful and mocking season: returning to the height of my career, not accepting Serie A and choosing Cesena to play for my favorite team at the age of 28 in Serie B. After 10 days in retreat I got hurt and at the end of the season relegation also came. Cesena has given me a lot, but there have always been unfavorable situations. Now I finally enjoy great satisfaction. I missed the victory and I’m happy I did it.”
What has this season left you?
«An immense joy. I was lucky enough to coach a strong and united group. I had already driven the 2006 and 2005, I was familiar with them and I knew they had quality. Now they have matured and grown and I’m happy that we also saw a good game. In all the matches we had dominance and many opportunities, more than the others. The most important aspect remains the growth of individuals, which is there for all to see.”
Did you always think you could do it?
“We won the first two and then drew, so we weren’t always in charge. But I always thought I could do it, especially when we led the sixth and then no one ever passed us. I was aware that I was coaching a strong team and that I could win, but then you have to prove it on the pitch. We were the strongest, but also the most continuous. And this has widened the gap. Our march was very similar to that of the first team for many reasons.”
Where do you think you grew as a coach?
«The beauty of this job is that you can grow and improve every day. If I think about when I started in Cesenatico and where I am today, I think everything has changed. Yet, the work is the same. A good coach must update himself, change, know how to adapt and know the human material available well. It is a vast and beautiful world, difficult and challenging. For me, the contribution of the staff has always been decisive and this year I was very lucky.”
She has a peculiarity. Since he joined Cesena he has worked with all the owners: from Edmeo and Giorgio Lugaresi to his brother Igor up to the 28 partners who restarted football after the bankruptcy and of course the American presidency. How has society changed compared to the past and what has changed for you?
«On a personal level, nothing has ever changed, because everyone has given me respect and esteem. I have always felt that I was a person liked by everyone, starting with Edmeo, who saw me as a son. With the managers, presidents and coaches I have worked with I have always felt important and I have always been able to work at the top.”
But today, with the Aiello family in command, do you notice a change compared to the past?
«It’s the first time that I don’t work with people from Romagna and our territory, but whoever is here today has absorbed the magic that Cesena transmits. Those who come from outside and immerse themselves in this reality are immediately infected and this applies to the Aiello family, but also to Arctic and Colacone. In my eyes it is as if the property were from Romagna. For sure, whoever arrived this year raised the level and did a great job. They were good at understanding that the passion and energy that the city and the fans transmit must be cultivated and exploited, because it is our greatest resource.”
Next year, in case of (obvious) confirmation, will it be more difficult for you to coach the Primavera knowing that the first team is no longer in C but in B?
«It must be an incentive to raise the bar and take a further leap forward, to get even closer to the big teams. We were once competitive with Inter, Juve, Milan and Roma and we must return to compete with these teams, even if football has changed and, above all, the investments of the big names have changed. It will be a more difficult mission, our new challenge.”
Could the new youngsters to be launched into the first team be Coveri and Amadori or are there other profiles too?
«It’s difficult to name names. I say that we have valuable and very capable young people. Whoever plays up front stands out more and Coveri and Amadori were actually wonderful. But we have strong players everywhere. Let’s take the young people who played with Toscano: there is a defender, a midfielder, a winger, an all-fielder and a striker. Well, even in Spring we have young people ready in all roles.”
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