Vincenzo Chiarenza, former Juve Primavera coach, and “his” goalkeeper: “A leader, a true goalkeeper, someone who has made difficult decisions. It will be a special match for him”
When Antonio Mirante wore black and white there was Pino Daniele in the background. “In the spring retreats I often brought the guitar. I played and he sang, he managed to imitate it very well.” Vincenzo Chiarenza, 69 years old, answers the phone and opens the album of memories. A former Juventus youth coach, he worked with the Rossoneri goalkeeper at the beginning of the 2000s. A couple of seasons full of satisfactions, made memorable by the arm-in-arm victory in the Viareggio Tournament in 2004. On Sunday evening, at San Siro, Mirante will play his first match as a starter for Milan. Curious case, faced with his past.
anecdotes and memories
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Chiarenza’s story starts from the musical anecdote. The team is in retreat, but there is a sense of lightness thanks to the kindness of the goalkeeper: “It happened often, our games together were memorable. His strong point was ‘Amici come prima’, they were really fun years”. The discussion then shifts to the human side: “Antonio is a serious, passionate and right-minded boy.” Someone capable of making a dressing room: “He was also our captain in more than a few matches. He has personality, he knows how to make himself heard and above all he was intelligent during his career. He made non-trivial decisions, like when he left Juventus to gain experience among the greats. In Turin he was closed by Buffon, there was little to do. He could have easily been Gigi’s second for many years, but he wasn’t satisfied.”
the “viareggio”
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The technician’s story repeatedly insists on a comparison. “True goalkeeper”. Chiarenza repeats it to impress the concept: “I understood that he would make progress from the training sessions. He lived them to the fullest, without sparing himself. At the end of the day I always filled him with shots on goal and the good thing was that I never managed to score. It’s indicative, there he cared and from these details you can understand a lot about him”. Together, the two triumphed in the 2004 Viareggio Tournament, in a team that included, among others, Raffaele Palladino: “It was a great ride and Antonio was the protagonist, but here I also have to remember something less positive (laughs, ed). In the first final against Empoli, which ended 3-3, he made three errors and the match was repeated two days later. I remember it precisely because it was a unique case, but I only told him one thing. ‘Whoever plays makes mistakes. It happens and will happen again.’ The important thing is to manage certain moments that sooner or later happen and learn to react. In the replay it was flawless, we won 3-0 and lifted the trophy.”
the big opportunity
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This time, fate had fun playing with intersections. Thanks to Maignan’s disqualification and Sportiello’s simultaneous injury, at San Siro it will be up to Mirante to defend Milan’s lead in the standings. For the class of ’83 it will be the first start for the Rossoneri (and the second appearance after the one in the last minutes against Verona, at the end of the last championship). The last one as a starter is dated 6 May 2021, a Roma-United match in the Europa League. “Over the years we haven’t spoken to each other again, but I followed him as I did with all my boys. For Antonio it will be a special evening. He grew up in Juve’s youth team and I hope for a great performance, so maybe he can have some other chances too in the future”.
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