Journalist Sebastiano Vernazza has reminded people not to get too carried away about Nicolo Zaniolo in a column for Gazzetta dello Sport.
Zaniolo has surprised many with his performances since arriving at Roma in the Summer as part of a deal that sent Radja Nainggolan to Inter. In fact, Zaniolo has outperformed the Belgian who has not performed as expected.
“It is right to get excited about Zaniolo and it is nice to enjoy the blossoming of a potential star, but at 19-years-old it is far too young to be hypothetical about the future. History is abundant with young players predicted to reach the top and instead end up with a tiresome present,” he wrote before going on to recall some players who have seemingly let the hype get the better of them.
“Simone Scuffet’s transfer is fresh news. The goalkeeper has been loaned by Udinese to Kasimpasa, a Turkish club, which is not the best move for a 22-year-old who, in 2013-14, was described as the possible successor of Buffon, something Gigi Donnarumma has since inherited. Scuffet refused a transfer to Atletico Madrid and he perhaps suffered from the rumours.”
He then went on to speak about Pietro Pellegri.
“Genoa sold 17-year-old prodigy Pellegri to Monaco for about €30 million. Likened to Ibrahimovic for his technique and physically, he has ended up in the shadows and I hope he gets out of them quickly. It is easy to say a player has a lot of promise but the reality is more complex than that. It is a law that applies to everyone, including Zaniolo.”
