24 January 2016
If Saturday’s events in the J-Academy were focused on Fabio Grosso’s Primavera securing another vital three points for their title push, Sunday’s proceedings had, in truth, already got underway on Friday when the Giovanissimi (Under 14s) posted this photo upon setting off for the Sparkassen Junior Trophy in Basel, Switzerland.
Over the course of the prestigious tournament, Alessandro Spugna’s young guns beat notable opposition in the form of Borussia Dortmund and hosts Basel (both 1-0) before drawing with Leipzig (0-0) and falling 2-0 to Liverpool.
Meanwhile, in the five-a-side competition, the Giovanissimi finished seventh overall, taking away plenty of valuable match experience from the two-day event.
There was also international travel this weekend for Juventus’ Pulcini (Under 13s), this time to the south-west German town of Oberhausbergen to take part in the European Futsal Cup.
Competing with clubs of the calibre of Lyon, Auxerre, Stuttgart, Roma, Lille and Freiburg, Piero Panzanaro’s charges reached the quarter-final stage, losing 5-4 on penalties to Toulouse (1-1 after regulation time).
Friendly matches were on the menu, meanwhile, for the Bianconeri’s Under 17s and Under 15s. While Felice Tufano’s outfit overcame Pavia 3-1 courtesy of strikes by Moussa Ndiaye and Federico Mastropietri (2), Davide Cei’s side drew 0-0 with Inter in Vinovo.
