Felice Tufano says he is delighted with the giant strides made by his high-flying Allievi Nazionali, who command a four-point lead at the top of this season’s league championship after 16 games played.
Key to the Allievi’s sensational introduction to the 2014/15 campaign is their strong work ethic, instilled on a daily basis by the 51-year-old coach and his team of dedicated assistants.
Speaking exclusively to Jtv, the club’s in-house television service, Tufano began: “It’s certainly been a positive start to our league season. The first part of the campaign has seen us make progress thanks our work, willingness and desire to improve. We’ve gained excellent results.”
The Brescia-born tactician will be keen to keep the Bianconeri bandwagon rolling on when he leads his youngsters across Piedmont to Vercelli on Sunday.
But with every away trip in a competitive division providing a challenging hurdle to overcome, he acknowledges his players will have to be at their very best if they are to return home with all three points.
“It will be a tough encounter, everyone always pulls out all the stops against us. That’s why my players deserve praise for the way they tackle each game, the hard yards they put in and the football they produce.
“The league’s a good standard. There aren’t any pushovers and each game requires a great deal of preparation in every respect.”
A moment of respite from the Allievi’s league campaign will come in the form of February’s All Kass International Cup in Qatar, where the likes of Real Madrid, Schalke 04 and River Plate provide the opposition in an elite youth tournament.
Tufano says his youngsters are eager to test themselves on the international stage, especially after enjoying a positive experience in England not so long ago.
“It will be an important test for us in Qatar, and a good opportunity to pit our wits against different sides to establish how far we’ve come. We’ll see if our work is on the same level as the big clubs we’ll come up against. It will be a learning curve for us, but we’ll also be able to hold our own.
“The lads are happy to go because the experience follows up the one we enjoyed a few months ago in England. That trip made us aware that we can compete with important teams. We’re happy the club has given us the opportunity to experience another great international competition.”