By Pete Borello
Coaches from Italy will come to Los Altos in August to teach American youngsters the finer points of Italian soccer.
The coaches are traveling to California for the second consecutive summer to put on the AC Milan Junior Camp.
The camp, aimed at advanced players ages 10-15, is scheduled for Aug. 6-10 at Los Altos High.
The camp is named after one of the top professional club teams in Italy, which is based in Milan.
AC Milan puts on camps throughout the world, under the direction of team vice-president Franco Baresi, recently named Italian player of the century.
“AC Milan is recognized in the entire world for its excellence in soccer,” said Paolo Carbone, the women’s soccer coach at Cabrillo College and the director of operations for AC Milan’s California camps. “They have won 16 Italian championships and five European Cup championships.”
AC Milan is sending two of its youth coaches to California: Paolo Montesano and Paolo Jatti. Carbone and three other area coaches, including Los Altos High boys varsity soccer coach Vava Marques, will also instruct players.
Carbone said Marques, who also coaches at Foothill College, “was crucial in helping me get Los Altos High as a location for the camp.”
Los Altos is one of two Bay Area spots AC Milan will hold camps this summer. A camp is scheduled for the University of California at Santa Cruz from July 30 through Aug. 3.
Three Bay Area players that took part in last year’s camp, held on the Santa Cruz campus, were invited to Italy to play an exhibition game before AC Milan’s match against Juventus, which drew 80,000 to San Siro Stadium.
Carbone said AC Milan plans to invite at least one player from this year’s camps to Italy for a similar experience. However, he assures all the players will come away from these camps with something.
“I expect them to get great coaching and self-confidence,” said Carbone, who played eight years of minor league soccer in Italy. “They will learn the way Italians see soccer.”
There is no deadline to register, but Carbone said he will limit each camp to 60 players, “to make sure to keep the quality of the camp high and give the best attention possible to the players.”
As of last week, 10 Los Altos residents had already signed up for the camp. Carbone stresses that the camp is for advanced players only, typically those playing CYSA Class I soccer, “to make sure the quality remains high.”
Sixteen-year-olds can also participate if they sign up in groups of 10.
The Los Altos camp will go from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. The daily schedule includes a morning practice, lunch, a video session and an afternoon practice.
The Los Altos camp costs $475. The Santa Cruz camp is $475 for commuters and $695 for overnighters. All campers receive AC Milan Junior Camp T-shirts, shorts, socks and a backpack.
For more information about either AC Milan Junior Camp, call Carbone at (408) 554-6448 or visit the camp Web site at www.acmilanjrcamp.com.
