prince_capri

Hello all,

This is a story running in conjunction with the thread: The Don Domination - A story foretold.

Anyways, just to give some quick information:
I have been the manager of AFC Wimbledon for about 16-17 seasons now, and have decided to write this story from a young player's perspective. This player is an Italian midfielder, (regen) called Marco Giusti. I will be mentioning most of the story as it unfolds, and the updates will come monthly (in game time) unless something interesting is to be mentioned.

Moreover, I have 'nada' information about Italian language or culture. So you will all have to forgive me for the blatant mistakes I make here, and I hope I don't offend anyone with crude Italian sentences derived from 'babelfish'.

Other than that, I hope its a good read, and as usual, suggestions/requests/feedbacks are always welcomed.

prince_capri

Marco Giusti (19)
Italian U21 player
Position: MC


(More profile information as the story progresses)


My childhood
I was born in Regalbuto, a commune in the province of Enna, in a region of Sicily in southern Italy. With a population of roughly 10,000; it was not a very big town. My early childhood was spent kicking about a deflated old football. It used to hurt my feet, but it was fun.

My two sisters, Giuseppina and Rosa had brought me up since the death of my parents in a tragic accident. I was very small when they died, “about 3”, Rosa had once told me. [/I]il mom ed il dad li amavano[/I] (Mom and dad loved you), she used to tell me.

When I was 10, I got a letter from Giuseppina, who, at that time, was living with her husband in Milan, not too far away from where I was. The letter was quite long, and written in English, mostly. I had been schooled in English since quite a young age, so reading was not really a problem. I opened the letter.


Dear Marco,
Hope all is well. Antonio and I are missing you here in Milan, and it would be great if you come and stay with us for your summer. I think Rosa has had enough of you now. : ). Also, we are expecting a ‘bambino’ (child) soon, and it would be nice to have to here to help us around a bit.

I hope you are eating well, and not spending too much time in the sun. Rosa told me about ‘il vostro amore per gioco del calico’ (your love for soccer), and the fact that you were spending too much time playing. I also saw your report cards, and it seems that your studies are getting neglected. I would suggest you set your priorities right. In this cut throat world of football, its really difficult to make a mark.

‘goda la vostra vita, Ma non si dimentichi che argomenti più’ (Enjoy your life, but don’t forget what matters the most.).

Give my love to Rosa, and see you soon.

Your sister,
Giuseppina



When I was 10, Rosa was 21 and Giuseppina was 25. They were the only family I had. Rosa had worked very hard to bring me up. She used to study and work part-time to support me through my childhood. I always though that I was a burden on her. I felt that I was holding her back, keeping her from fulfilling her potential. Once, I even tried telling Rosa that it would be better if I run away. She slapped me that day. Non dica quello (Do not say that). She was angry when I said that, “Mama and Papa left you in the care of me and Giuseppina. We would not want anything to happen to you. And you will always stay with me. We are a family, always remember that; Silly ragazzo (Silly boy). I had never mentioned running away again, I would never want to make my sister unhappy.

prince_capri

Visiting Giuseppina
Upon invitation, at the age of 10, I had visited Giuseppina for a month. Rosa, my other sister, cared about me too much to let me go for the whole summer. “I will be back before you know it Rosa”, I had told her.

Giuseppina and Antonio, her husband, had a small apartment in Milan. It was small compared to our parental house in Regalbuto. “A house in Milan is very expensive”, Giuseppina had told me over my first meal in their house. “Well, we will be looking for a bigger house as soon as our financial situation”, Antonio added. I was 10, and didn’t know much about financial intricacies of living. And Giuseppina had been cut-off from Rosa and me for the past 4 years. She used to send money ever so often, but it was not enough for our upkeep. A child would mean that it would be even more difficult for our older sister to support us.

They gave me a small room to sleep in. The room was half-furnished, seemingly for a new-born baby. Its probably being redone for their new child I had thought.

Milan was a beautiful city. With a poplation of about £2.5M, it was now home to many other EU nationals. Giussepina shoed me the Gucci and Prada offices. The clothes and shoes there were very expensive, I could not even dream of buying one. We also saw the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio , the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, which housed the famous painting: The Last supper. “It was really cultural coming here”, I had told my sister, “I would have to come here again, when I am older”. Giuseppina nodded. Whenever Marco. Whenever you want.

In Milan, I found a lot of kids my age playing football. It was a nice change to kick around a proper football, rather than the old one I had at home. I was good at it too. Antonio saw me playing and he told Giuseppina, “For a 10 year old kid, he plays really well. I think we should speak to Mihajlovic, he might have a chance here”.

Sinisa Mihajlovic was an ex-Serbian international, and was now the 1st team coach for Inter. “He is a very talkative man, just stay quite and let me do the talking”, Antonio had told me on the way to Inter’s office. I had heard of Inter before; they were one of many football teams in Italy, but I had never seen their ground. We reached the lobby and Antonio said some quick words in Italian and the receptionist picked up the receiver to call someone.

A man in black suit came to us after about 5 minutes, and took us into a large office. The plaque on the door said that this was the office of Sinisa Mihajlovic. I was nervous, but there wasn’t much I could do. I was even confused, because neither Antonio or Giuseppina had told me as to why I was visiting Sinisa. “You wait outside”, Antonio told me, as he started talking to Sinisa. The wait outside Sinisa’s office was not long. The only thing I noticed was a long corridor, with many other offices, one of them belonging to one Gareth Southgate, who I was later told had recently took the job after resigning from Chelsea. Few minutes later, Antonio came out from the office, looked at me with a cheerful face, and told me to go and speak to Sinisa.



“So your name is Marco right? And you are 10 years old?”
“Yes Sir”, I politely responded.
“Do you know why your uncle brought you here?”
“No Sir, not for sure.”
“Well, your uncle is an idiot, that’s why! He is a football fan, like any other Italian. And he thinks that you have great potential. Can you play football kid?”

His words sounded harsh. Something felt different. I had never really met a man so rude.

“Well, sir, I play football with my friends. And I think I do Ok, for my level.”
“Well, have you ever seen real football? Do you think you can play like the Pele’s, Gattuso’s and Totti played?”
“I don’t know”, I was getting quite nervous by then. It was like an interrogation I was not prepared for. The only thing I could understand was that my uncle wanted me to join the Inter’s youth program, and so he had bring me to Sinisa’s office.
“Well, sonny boy, as far as I know, you can’t play for s**t. You uncle showed me a couple of videos, and you seem like an average player at best. I am afraid we have no place for you here.” The word s**t scared me. Rosa had always protected me from such obscenities, and hearing a grown man saying all these things, and being so rude jjust scared me!



“Well, don’t worry Marco”, Antonio said on the way back, “you still have a long way to go. Don’t let this rejection pull you down. I have seen you play, and I know you can do it.”

I was confused. I didn’t really know what was happening. I enjoyed playing football with my friends, but I had never really thought of playing professionally. I was too young for that. Moreover, I knew that Rosa would not let me go away, well, not till she gets married anyways. Giuseppina had done the same. She, Rosa and me had promised to stay together forever, as a family; but her marriage to Antonio had changed everything. They had moved to Milan, and Rosa and I were left to look after ourselves.

prince_capri

Back in Regalbuto
The next 4 years of my life passed casually. I concentrated on learning science and languages, and Rosa graduated and entered into a full-time job. Since Giuseppina had left, Rosa had been like my mother; she had taken care of me, and sheltered me. More so, she had put my life before hers, giving a true meaning to the word famiglia.

I got a letter on my 15th birthday. Rosa wouldn’t tell me who the letter was from, I guess there was something about it that she didn’t want me to know. She finally gave up and gave me the letter, and I read it, loudly:


Dear Marco,

I hope this letter finds you in good health.

I am Sinisa Mihajlovic, Inter’s new assistant manager to Gareth Southgate, who has recently moved to Inter again, from his previous job with Barcelona, in Spain.

Anyways, we have been looking through all the recent tapes of young footballers and Mr. Southgate personally asked me to check on you and find out if you would be interested in doing a trial with Inter. I understand that four years ago you were crudely rejected from Inter’s offices; but rest assured, our recent policies has deemed it imperative that we try to unearth some good Italian footballers and bring back t he golden era for Italy.

I have also spoken to Antonio, your uncle; and he tells me that you still have your football skills. I also understand that you and your family would require accommodation, if you were to play with us. That we are happy to provide, and rest assured, if you chose to accept our invitation for trials, you will be provided with the best facilities.

It would be a great pleasure to see you here.
Waiting to hear from you.

Yours truly,
Sinisa Mihajlovic.



This was a pleasantly surprising letter. Trials with Inter was the last thing I had expected. Moreover, I was still enjoying my football, so giving it a shot seemed like a good option. The only problem was Rosa. I had to convince her that it would be beneficial for the whole family if I get connected with one of the top clubs in Italy. To my surprise, Rosa was very excited, and was happy for me to go to Milan.

I went to Milan myself to join Inter for trial. During this time, I had also been receiving letters from other Italian clubs, including Juventus, Milan, Napoli and such. I also had trials at Napoli and Milan, but in the end, decided to join Inter, since it was the first club that had approached me.

I joined the youth academy at Inter. And during this time, Rosa got married with an English man called John Smith. John lived in London and so Rosa had to move away. She was very happy to see me growing up, but was also sad to leave. We said our good-byes, promising that I would come and see her in London.

Giuseppina and Antonio had another child, and so I was on my own in the end, at the age of 18, playing in one of the country’s top youth facilities.

Will-NFFC

prince, i'm very intruiged by this story, very different and it looks good. Keep it up

prince_capri

Thanks Will, hopefully this would be quite a creative piece


When I was 18
My time at Inter was not very eventful. I was barely involved in the first team games. Always on the sidelines, watching the big guns winning day-in, day-out. I started day-dreaming about playing for Inter one day. Then I got a letter. A letter 3 years ago had changed my life significantly, I didn’t not know what to expect of this letter from the Inter management.

The letter was a quick memo from Gareth Southgate, Inter’s manager.


Dear Marco,

I hope you are in good health.
Your development as a player has been recently brought to my attention. And I am very happy and a excited to tell you that you would be soon officially joining the Inter under-18 squad for the upcoming season (2023/24). I would like to thank you for sticking by us for the past 3 years, and hopefully, you will successfully enjoy a long, successful era with Inter.

Yours truly,
Gareth.


Short, but sweet!

The letter filled me with so many hopes. I could finally see my dreams coming true. I gave the news to Rosa; and Giuseppina and Antonio came to visit me in the Team’s residence. The team’s official residence was for young players, who were living away from home. This residence was home away from home.

The celebrations lasted a few days, after which, I joined the Inter camp for the season.

It seemed that I had made a sudden impact on the coaching staff. They could see my potential, and newspapers started comparing me with Francesco Totti; the ex-Italian international who was still one of the best players the country had ever produced. Still, I was considered too young for the game, and I ended up playing for the youths for a season.

Meanwhile, I was also getting recognition from other clubs. In particular, AFC Wimbledon in England. The Dons camp was based in London, and I had asked Rosa about it. She had sent me some information about their current manager, Raj Sachdeva, how he ran the club, his ambitions..etc, all the information publicly accessible. It was very useful, because upon his scout’s recommendation, the AFC manager did make an offer for me. But it was for Gareth to decide.

In early March of 2024, Gareth called me to his office:


“Marco, how is everything coming along? I hear you are developing well.”
“Yes Mr. Southgate. Things are looking good. Just had one query actually.”
“Well, hold that thought. I have got some news for you”, Gareth continued, “As you may know, AFC Wimbledon are interested in buying you. Would you be interested to play for them?”
“Well Sir, I haven’t given it much thought but it would be great playing for them. They are one of the biggest team in Europe. Having said that, I do not wish to seem disrespectful of the Inter management. I mean, the club has honed me well, and I am where I am because of that.”
“Well, its good that you say that. But the thing is, Dons have bid in £13M for you, and at your age, its too good an amount not to cash on. So I think you will be parting company with us soon. Hope that is ok?”

“Yes Sir, that would be alright.”


I did not know what else to say. On one hand, I felt sad leaving Italy behind; but I knew that London would be a whole new chapter in my life all together. Moreover, I would be able to see Rosa more often, although I will be away from Giuseppina.

I moved to London mid-June. The weather was bad, and my initial outlook was not all that good. Still, I was looking forward to joining AFC Wimbledon, and meet my new colleagues.

prince_capri

My AFC Wimbledon career begins
I officially joined the AFC Wimbledon squad on the 1st July, 2024. There were other new signings as well, including Davide Piraccini, an Italian wonder kid from Juventus, Jan Monteagudo, another wonder kid attacking Spanish midfielder; Cedric Callot: 20 year old French winger. All in all, the manager had signed numerous midfielders for this season, and I was not very comfortable about the competition. Although Marco Fabbrini’s presence in the team had assured me that it felt like home. Raj Sachdeva (Dons’ manager) made sure that I was tutored by Fabbrini, the Italian legend.

It was an exciting time for me, but injuries hampered me settling into the club. Initially, it was just a simple facial injury, but back strain kept me out for all the games in August. This was not exactly what I had planned, but I was still happy to sit in reserves and regain fitness to take part in the team’s campaign. I was still young, so there was enough time for me to play.

All this time, Fabbrini was quite helpful in creating a home-like atmosphere for me at the club. There were 2 other Italian players at the club, both recent signings, and at the end of the day, Fabbrini was the only one who we could turn to, when in trouble. At 33 years, Fabbrini was approaching the end of his playing career. I was hoping all along that he would be able to somehow stay for another year or two, because his guidance was proving to be really useful.

prince_capri

Sitting in the reserves
Knock, knock.

It was Rosa at my hotel room door. It had been a month into the new season, and I still hadn’t managed to find a place to live. I was glad to see Rosa and John in London. I had already visited them twice, and they had promised to find me a place to live, mostly because it is too expensive to live in hotels. My weekly salary of £2K went into most of the living cost, so saving for a better tomorrow was imperative.


“Hey fratello, come essere tutto?” Rosa said.

“Hey sis, Everything is fine thanks. How are you and John?”

“Never been better kiddo, its great to be able to see you again! Its good that you moved to London, John and I are really excited.”

“I am too”, I said.

“Well, as for your living place, I have got a suggestion”, John said, “Rosa and I have talked about it, and we think that you should move in with us for an year or two. I think it would be good for you if you save some money first and then but a property in a couple of year’s time. See how things go, eh?”

“hmm…I dunno John, I mean I don’t wish to be a burden on you two.”

“Oh Marco, never say that. You can never be a burden on me, or on us for that matter”, Rosa chimed in. I always brought out the motherly instinct in my sisters. It was nice to be taken care of, sometimes.

“Ok then, sounds good. And I hope Andrew and Anna won’t bother me too much.”

“Oh no they won’t. The kids are growing up quickly”, John smilingly replied.



So I moved in with my sister and her husband. They were very understanding, and eating home-cooked food everyday was just God’s gift!

Although in terms of playing career, things were not looking up for me. I was still playing for reserves, and did well in the two games I played. I also managed to return to fitness pretty quickly, and I was assured that before the end of September, I would be playing for AFC Wimbledon’s first team. Obviously, since I had been touted as the next Francesco Totti; Mr. Sachdeva was under pressure to play me sooner or later.

mark wilson27

Enjoying the story, well both stories, keep up the good read prince_capri

prince_capri

Cheers Mark! Really appreciate the support


My first game
My first game for Dons came on 28th September, 2024. I was not in the best of health, could have been better, but Raj managed to give me a game against Leicester. My performance was rather mediocre at best, I only made 4 interceptions while playing in the midfield, and as such did not make my performance count.

Back home, Rosa was sympathetic.

You will turn it around Marco. Coming back from injury is never easy, give yourself time and you will get your natural game.

More injury troubles had put me out for 2 weeks, and I only managed one more game at the end of October, the one against Valencia, away. My performance here was well appreciated by the Dons management. And hopefully in the near future, I will be able to play more games.