Inter’s failure to keep hold of youth talent Wilfried Gnonto is an illustration of the fact that Italian regulations should do more to allow Italian teams to keep hold of young prospects.
This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, who argue that the fact that the Nerazzurri were not able to offer the young Italian forward a pre-contract was a factor in his decision to leave for Zurich FC.
Gnonto has emerged as a major talent, with his move to Zurich having enabled him to play a prominent role in a senior footballing side as he was pivotal to the Swiss side’s charge to a top-flight league title in the season just gone.
The 18-year-old will feel that the switch from Inter was the right one for his development, as it also earned him a call-up to the senior Italian national team, for whom he appeared off the bench against Germany.
However, the Nerazzurri will feel that Gnonto is “the one that got away” in the sense that he was sold to Zurich despite the fact that his potential was already visible in 2020 and he was training with the senior squad under Antonio Conte when he left.
According to the Gazzetta, the chief reason for Gnonto’s reason to leave was that Inter were unable to offer him a major pre-contract at the age of fifteen, something which they argue Italian regulations should allow for so that Italian teams can maintain control of promising youngsters.
