Christian Montegan 
Alessandro Circati lining up for the Socceroos against Palestine in Perth. Photo: Provided by Aleksandar Jason/Subway Socceroos.
Iconic names have walked through the doors of Parma including Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Hernan Crespo, and Gianfranco Zola. Former UEFA Super Cup and two-time UEFA Cup winners, the club holds a special place in Italian football heritage.
Two former Socceroo internationals understand the importance of their history. Vince Grella and Mark Bresciano joined Empoli as teenagers, before sharing the locker room at Parma between 2004 and 2006.
The midfield pair developed their craft at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), plying their trade in the National Soccer League (NSL), before making the significant jump to Italy’s top flight.
Now, 20-year-old centre-back Alessandro Circati is the latest Aussie to entrench his name at the club, following in his father’s footsteps to represent the Emilia-Romagna-based club.
But Circati’s journey was disparate compared to Grella and Bresciano. He didn’t adapt his craft at the AIS.
Instead, he spent seven seasons playing with Perth Soccer Club and the Perth Glory youth sector, leading to a trial in England at Leicester City before signing for Parma in 2022.
Over the past decade ever since Australia’s golden generation fizzled out, a worrying lack of Aussie representation in Europe’s top leagues has hampered the nation’s progress both domestically and on the world stage. Excitingly though, that is drastically changing.
Speaking on the Round Ball Australia podcast, the two-time capped Socceroo shared his views on transitioning to European football and the importance of selecting the right move.
“I think everyone has their own time. Personally, I had an opportunity to go to Germany a couple of months before I went to England,” Circati said.
“My coach at the time told me, ‘look, I don’t think you’re ready. Give yourself a few months.’ He helped me and suggested that in a couple of months, I could be more ready. I listened to him and I did exactly what he told me.
“But everyone has their own timeline depending [on] how easy people can adapt at [certain] ages because sometimes it’s better to go [overseas] when you’re more mature. When they’re younger they might struggle and get homesick. You go back home and that’s sort of the end of it.
“I wouldn’t set an age on it because it’s more of a maturity topic. I believe from my experiences, if you’re not making a professional transfer before the age of 18 then you have to be in Europe to actually get a chance.
“Obviously if you’re making a professional transfer that’s completely different, for example, Nestor [Irankunda] at Adelaide to Bayern. But if you’re playing in a non-professional environment, I think before the age of 18 you have to be in Europe.”
You can listen to the full conversation with Circati with the Round Ball Australia team on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts, with new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.