The new manager brought some new ideas and a fresh perspective to the club which provided a much-needed ambiance inside the dressing room. Over the summer, the club made some staff changes by parting ways with Gabriele Cioffi and appointing Andrea Sottil from Ascoli as the new manager. With this mindset we give them time to grow.'Ĭraving even more coverage of the world's game? Listen below and follow ¡Qué Golazo! A Daily CBS Soccer Podcast where we take you beyond the pitch and around the globe for commentary, previews, recaps and more. The first year they need to be in competition with the starter and then potentially become crucial for us in their second year. Also, we want players that don't have to be crucial for us in their first year, they need time to grow. Our strategy is clear, be first and anticipate our competitors also through good relations with other clubs and agents. Then it can happen that things change in a positive or a negative way, but there is always a strategy for the talents that arrive here.

Last May, technical director Pierpaolo Marino spoke to CBS Sports and explained really well how they work with talents and their players: 'We usually have a two-to-three-year project for every player. With the advent of this new system of work, Udinese found a way to stay at the top and remain arguably one of the best European clubs at unearthing young talents, but it predictably took them some time to adapt. These days, platforms such as Wyscout can provide clubs and directors data and video footage of basically every single player around the globe. Suddenly, everything changed when technology made it easier for game access to become available to the public, regardless of whether they were involved in the sport or not. They were able to capitalize off of a market inefficiency. Behind the scenes in Udine, they created their own secret scouting platform and had a room with more than 20 televisions where they could watch players from all over the world. Not only did they have a knack for identifying talent, but they also established a revolutionary system that made them the quickest club to find new players. There were a few reasons as to why they were considered as one of the bests in the past. When modern technology completely overturned the way scouts and the clubs operate, Udinese had to find a way to adapt. They managed to discover talents in the past because of their innovative scouting system built through the years. Sustainability is the key word for a club the likes of Udinese. There were some years where things didn't go as planned and the club staved off relegation a few times, but after the return of technical director Pierpaolo Marino, things seemed to be back to normality. Alexis Sanchez, Rodrigo De Paul or Samir Handanovic are just a few names that come to mind. There is an infinite list of young talents discovered by Udinese in the past decade or so.

The project has shown signs of success in the past as the club reached the UEFA Champions League group stage in the 2005-06 season thanks to a historical fourth place finish in the previous season under Luciano Spalletti who later took the AS Roma coaching job. Led by owner Giampaolo Pozzo, whose son Gino owns English side Watford FC, the club has always tried to create a roster where players could develop and become stars.

Udinese's Cinderella run surprised most of the critics and fans, but that should not be the case if you look at how the club works. They already notched five wins under their belt with one draw and the lone loss coming on opening day against Serie A champions AC Milan at San Siro. Last season, it took 24 matchweeks for the Bianconeri from northeastern Italy to reach five wins and 15 to match their current points total (16) this season. More surprising to a casual fan is the fact that Udinese, a team that finished mid-table last season, is only one point behind the pace.Īs we return to Serie A game after the international break, Udinese have a date with Hellas Verona on Monday (2:45 p.m. If you take a quick glance at the Serie A table through seven matches, you will notice Napoli and Atalanta at the top with 17 points apiece, which could be surprising to some.

Project runway season 19 episode 7