a Series D

Captain Elis Kaptina is in a very difficult situation with Virtus Bozen. © A. Kemenater

Endless crisis at Virtus Bozen: “Many reasons led to this”

Weakest attack, second worst defense, and bottom of the table with only 10 points from 22 games. Virtus Bozen's season is not a good one. Nevertheless, coach Alfredo Sebastiani is not giving up hope.

Last year, Virtus Bozen struggled to reach Serie C for a long time. A year later, there is no sign of that anymore. The second best football club in South Tyrol is facing relegation to the top league. But it's not that time yet and coach Alfredo Sebastiani (he has been on the sidelines of Virtus Bozen since July 2017) doesn't want to bury his head in the sand. He says: “Even if the situation seems hopeless, there is still a glimmer of hope. And we want to use this.”


There was a small change at Virtus Bozen in the summer. Some top performers like Adrian Osorio (he came back in the winter) and Tine Kavcic have left the club. But that is just one piece of the puzzle of the current misery, says Sebastiani: “Many reasons have led to us now being where we are. One reason is certainly that we played beyond our means last year.” The experienced football coach, who already worked in England at Watford FC, knows: “Perhaps the strong preseason contributed to everyone giving a little less at the beginning has. The last bit of determination was missing.” There were also one or two unsuitable transfers – and one point that is often left out: the youth players.

Sebastiani still believes in the impossible

Virtus Bozen sources the majority of its youth players from the youth sector of FC Südtirol. The white-red talents can gain their first experience with the “big guys” in Serie D. Last year there were young talents in the squad, Noah Mayr and Lukas Sinn, who were absolute top performers and who are believed to be able to make the leap into the professional game at FCS. This year it's not quite the same, says Sebastiani: “Serie D is a very difficult league, it's now as good as Serie C from before. That doesn’t make it easy for the boys, some of them may not yet be at the same level as the youth players from last year.”

Virtus Bozen coach Alfredo Sebastiani doesn't want to give up yet. He believes in his team.

Virtus Bozen still has some time, but they also have to deal with relegation. What would happen? “The club wouldn’t fall apart. We are very solidly positioned. This year a lot of attention was paid to the junior team, which plays nationally. I'll be honest, I'm not thinking about it at the moment. I just think about the upcoming game. The team's great commitment gives me hope, even if rescue seems impossible," says Sebastiani combatively.

In the next few days, Sebastiani will have time to fine-tune the details in training. Because the renowned Viareggio tournament is taking place - and a Serie D youth team always plays there - the people of Bolzano are not in action this weekend.

SPGUVTVP
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2.Treviso22142638:2544
3. Bassano22116523:1439
4. Dolomiti Bellunesi22108430:1838
5. Portogruaro22105728:2735
6. Campodarsego2288626:1932
7. This2288628:2232
8. Mestre2294919:2131
9. Luparensis2286827:2630
10. Monte Prodeco2278719:2229
11. Montecchio M.2285925:2929
12. Chions2278728:2729
13. Castegnato2268827:3326
14. Adriese2259829:2724
15. Breno22311821:2720
16. Cjarlin's Muzane222101017:2816
17. Mori S. Stefano22351417:3714
18. Virtus Bozen22171412:3610

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