The head of Parma’s youth sector: “Yesterday a mother wrote to me thanking us for the youth development even though the boy didn’t play much”
The manager of Parma’s youth sector, Mattia Notari, spoke about working with young people during the Serie A Festival which was held in Parma: “I get excited talking about a club that has made an important leap to return to Serie A. I grew up in the oratory and went from playing there to Milan’s youth team. We were big and small, boys and girls, we made teams and made the rules. Today the biggest mistake may be to look at that world with nostalgia. Generations follow one another at such a speed that sometimes we try to chase them, but we have to be good at putting ourselves into the role. The pressures that a coach and a manager may have who must achieve a result are different from those of an educator who must help grow. Here with me are some representatives of Parma and we have cornerstones including the recruitment of coaches and educators with whom we have developed a child protection program“.
THE STRATEGY – “The federation in the technical sector has been working for years trying to align itself with European directives. In what is the evaluation system for future youth teams there will be a division between home-grown and local boys, a boy who may be from Parma but also a second generation immigrant or a boy who speaks Parma dialect even if he comes from Sweden . There will be parameters to be settled, but beyond sporting results the parameter to be respected will be to have common spaces with experts who can provide information not only on gaming systems but who can listen to the kids, protecting them. Parma Calcio has been working with lawyers for 14 months to update this internal regulation, which can be extended to all sports for youth policy“.
FREE TO HAVE FUN – “Yesterday a mother wrote to me thanking us for the youth path even though the boy played little. It’s our fault because we didn’t put the boy in the best conditions. But receiving a thank you message because the boy fought and understood what it means to leave home and fight for a starting shirt and made him grow is nice. Sometimes the weight of having to prove that they are worthy sometimes crushes guys“.
