Circati On Goalscoring Milestone For Parma

Socceroo teenager Alessandro Circati preserves Parma’s unbeaten record with first-ever goal in professional football

From obscurity to exaltation, Alessandro Circati’s career just keeps getting better. Following a call-up to Australia’s Socceroo squad earlier this year, the 19-year-old has since become the focal point of Parma’s backline, producing a string of brilliant performances and enhancing his chances of a national team debut against England.

With defending his primary role and Parma trailing 0-1 at home, Circati scored his first-ever professional goal, rescuing a point for the Ducali with an 82nd-minute header against Sampdoria on match day six of Italy’s Serie B.

“I’ve felt it coming for a long time”, Circati told me. “Scoring your first professional goal is a great feeling. It’s a dream come true, something that I’ve been waiting for and I felt it coming for a long time.”

It’s a goal that kept coach Fabio Pecchia’s 16-game undefeated run intact and a defining moment that piqued the interest of Graham Arnold, the Australia boss watching from the stands of the Stadio Ennio Tardini, as Circati wheeled away euphorically to celebrate with teammates.

The teenage starlet may have proven his ability in the attacking third, but it’s his contribution in the back half that’s helped his side keep top spot in the Italian second tier. Collectively, promotion-chasing Parma has conceded three goals, the lowest of any side contesting all seven league matches so far. Individually, Circati has impressed with an 88.9% pass completion rate, amassed the most minutes (540) of any outfield player, and leads the league for shots blocked (11). It’s clear why Pecchia has put his faith in the Parma-born prodigy.

“To earn the trust of a coach isn’t easy,” Circati explains. “It all starts with training. Training leads to games. Games are where you have to show and prove that he can trust you every game. Your performances in training will lead to you getting opportunities to play.”

Despite being tasked with marshalling Serie B’s most influential strikers throughout the first 18 months of his senior football career, Circati has remained a calm presence on the pitch. “It’s something within me. I like to focus, I go to another place.”

Earlier this year, Circati signed a contract extension until 2027, further strengthening the bond between club and player. Moreover, the former Perth Glory youth product carved out his own piece of history by becoming the first Australian to score for Parma since Vince Grella (2006), the first Australian to score in Serie B since Salernitana’s Chris Ikonomidis (2016), and, along with Verona’s Ajdin Hrustić, remains one of two Socceroos competing in Italy’s top two divisions.

It’s an ascension also recognized by football data website, Transfermarkt. Circati’s value has sextupled from €150,000 ($158,000) to €900,000 ($948,000) in the space of twelve months.

Circati’s first goal at club level couldn’t have come at a better time. The equalizer against the Blucerchiati arrived at the beginning of a tense week as Parma faced last season’s Serie A sides, Sampdoria and Cremonese, and promotion playoff finalist, Bari.

“Obviously, we have no fear going into these games,” says Circati. “This is the toughest period for us, the toughest three games. We know that everyone wants to beat us, we need to stay focused.”

As the fourth most successful Italian club in UEFA competitions, Parma was acquired by American entrepreneur Kyle Krause in 2020. The president’s motto is ‘dream big’, a maxim that Circati has stood by since making his debut in February 2022, losing only three times in 21 matches when starting.

“It’s something within me. I’ve always been a focused kind of person. I go to another place.”

Still uncapped for Australia, and with the October international break coming up, Circati’s breathtaking form at club level can no longer go unrewarded, further strengthening claims for a Socceroos bow against Harry Kane’s England at Wembley Stadium.

“I think I deserve it. I’ve worked hard to get here and I know I’ve got what it takes. It’s up to the coach to make that call.”