Emiliano Bonazzoli: Lessons from Parma, Lecco, and the Clash of Prandelli vs Novellino

Fiorentina, Sampdoria, Parma... the former centre-forward has a storied history playing for some of his country's biggest clubs. Now, eight years into his coaching career, Bonazzoli has seamlessly transitioned between coaching men's and women's football with great success.

Tribalfootball.com was able to catch up with Bonazzoli recently and discuss his time in the game, the personalities he's played with and against - and his coaching ambitions.

Emiliano, your goalscoring ability took you not only around Italy, but also the world. Which club amongst the 15 you played for stands out?

“The most important team that I played for was of course Fiorentina, the 6 months that I had there. I went there on loan from Sampdoria. It was a club that was fighting to qualify for the Champions League. I liked a lot my time there, the club was very structured, the fans were amazing and I can say that I had the pleasure to play with great players there and in the end we achieved our goal. 

"Regarding the club that I feel most a part of I would say Reggina because I played there for 6 years. I definitely feel a part of that club more than the other clubs that I have played for."

So on Reggina, what is your most memorable moment?

"In my career, the most beautiful goal that I have scored was when I was playing for Reggina and I scored against Lazio. My most important one as it was in the play-off for staying in Serie A again at Reggina against Atalanta. The goal that I scored made it possible that we stayed in the Serie A. Of course, there have been other important goals but these two are those that I want to mention."

You also just mentioned Sampdoria - where you were partnered in attack with a certain Antonio Cassano...

"To be honest with you we didn't have a great relationship because he had a character and I had mine but despite this, I can say that he is one of the best players I have played with. I had the chance to play with different great players like (Adrian) Mutu, (Alberto) Gilardino and of course, Antonio is on the list of the best players I have played with."

You also played for Parma at a great time in their history with the likes of Fabio Cannavaro, Claudio Taffarel and Hakan Sukur among your teammates...

“My time there playing with these great players it was like starting from the earth and going to the moon because I arrived there from Brescia and I was a young player. 

"For me at that age, arriving from a small team and finding myself in the locker room with those great players in that club that was achieving great success in that time was something unbelievable. It was a great experience for me because I learned a lot there from all those great players. 

"And in that period I took great advantage of every day because in every session I was observing them and trying to learn as much as possible from them."

And as a striker, you trained with - or is that against? - three of Serie A's great goalkeepers at Parma...

"All of them were great keepers and the best at that time. With (Sebastien) Frey, I played more than with the others because I played with him also at Fiorentina. With (Gianluigi) Buffon, I made the summer preseason with him and then he left and to be honest with you I never scored a goal against Buffon! 

"Regarding Taffarel I played with him for one year and of course he was a great keeper. One thing that I can remember about him was that you could put him as an attacking midfielder without any problem because he had great technique and was very capable of playing the ball with his feet."

And now we see Parma back in Serie A. What do you make of that?

"They deserved it because they have been working on this goal for three years now and the project they started has brought them success this season. They are a very organised club, with a clear project and they have trust in the young players. I think there are different young players that in the future can play for some of the best teams in Italy. For me, they have a very good training complex and they have a very capable coach (Fabio Pecchia), who for me has a great future in front of him."

What did you make of Andrea Pirlo's work with Sampdoria last season?

"For me, he is doing a very good job because reaching the play-offs after relegation and overcoming an important problem regarding the previous owner is a great achievement. They didn't start well in the beginning, but time after time they fixed things and began winning matches and also played an attractive style of football."

Then there's Fiorentina and another European final defeat...

"Maybe someone expects a little bit more from the team in Serie A but we should not forget that in front are teams like Rome, Lazio, Napoli, Milan, Juventus, etc and so the results that the team is achieving in the league are very good despite that. 

"It's fair to expect from Fiorentina a little bit more and this demonstrates the level that the team has achieved. And it’s important to remember that two European finals in two consecutive years is  a great result that not everybody achieves."

As a coach, it's fair to say you've worked your way up from the grassroots. Who are the biggest influences on your coaching approach?

“Starting from a strong character point of view I would put Walter Novellino in the first place because he had a great character, worked hard on the mentality of the players and the character they needed to show on the pitch. 

"Cesare Prandelli instead was more a coach who wanted to talk with the players, he wanted the dialogue with us and Walter Mazzarri wanted more to see and understand by himself without talking with us players and he wanted to understand the players without talking with them. He was not so keen towards the dialogue with the players. 

"Regarding the technical-tactical aspect I would say that Prandelli had something more than the others to be honest with you, he liked a lot to work on the little technical-tactical details that could make a difference during the game. 

"I remember that Mazzarri had those 2-3 ideas that transmitted very easily to the players, instead, Novellino based on his character had a more linear game plan."

You've now coached men's and women's teams, how have you found moving between the two forms of the game?

"They have been experiences where we achieved all the objectives that we had at the beginning of the season with the club. At Renate, I was part of the staff and it helped me a lot because it was a great experience for me and I learned a lot from it. 

"Then it was this experience of Lecco (last season) where I can speak honestly I made two steps in front from Serie D to Serie B and I can say that I wasn’t ready yet for this challenge in Serie B. But I think when these occasions are in front of you it is a good thing to accept it and test yourself. But despite all, I am happy to have tried this experience because it made me a better coach and I learned a lot. 

"Regarding the aspect of women's or men's football I can say that I felt very comfortable in both categories, but to be honest I like to coach the men's football. I think that women's football is getting better and better every year. I think that the women like to work more than the men and this is a great thing because the women are more eager to train harder and harder to get better and to reach the top."

As you mentioned, it didn't work out for you with Lecco last season. So what's next for Emiliano Bonazzoli?

“I would like a lot to try an experience as a coach abroad, I don’t mind if it is in Europe or outside Europe but I would love to try and know and learn a new football culture as a coach. And for this reason, I finished a course in English regarding football language one month ago. Let’s see what will happen in the future but I am ready to listen to all the offers and projects that will come to me from every league in Italy and abroad. 

"It is important for me  to return to the pitch and continue my journey as a coach and continue to develop and get better."