Zenica won't be forgotten. But the 2030 mission starts now
A third consecutive missed World Cup. Instead of mourning, let's count the talent: the 2003-2008 generation is Italy's most exciting in twenty years.
The penalties in Zenica still hurt. Cristante's crossbar, Bajraktarevic's winning kick, Bosnia at the World Cup and Italy home for the third time in a row. But this site was not born to dwell on it: it was born to count, track and tell the story of the kids who in 2030 will be the right age to take us back where we belong.
Look at the numbers. A 2006-born defender signed by Liverpool for over €30m. A striker who debuted in Serie A at 15. A 2005-born midfielder starting at San Siro. An entire generation — 2003 to 2008 — playing, scoring and growing, in Italy and increasingly abroad.
Italy's problem was never talent: it was attention. The kids who move to the Premier League or La Liga drop off the Italian media's radar; the academy kids never make it on. Italian Next Gen exists to close that gap: every day, every young Azzurro, wherever he plays.
The countdown has begun: four years to the 2030 World Cup. Follow them with us, one by one.