Viva Italia! The Rich History of the Irish in Italy
Irish ties with Italy go deeper than your local chipper. Especially in football. Besides Giants Stadium at U.S.A. ’94 and Giovanni Trapatoni, there have been a number of Irish internationals who have plied their trade in the Bel Paese over the years. Recent years have seen an influx of Irish starlets to Italian clubs so it’s the perfect time to have a look back on the Irishmen who’ve played with some of Serie A‘s biggest sides.
Brady, Sloan and…Kunding?
Many people believe Paddy Sloan to be the first Irishman to play for an Italian club, but there might be another. Heinrich ‘Matts’ Kunding supposedly played for both Torino and Juventus between 1909 and 1911. Hardly anything is known about Kunding. The only birthday is a rather doubtful January 1, 1886, in Zürich, which explains the name.
According to his extremely sparse statistics page at myjuve.it (along with a grainy old photograph), he played six times for the Bianconeri, including a friendly against Inter. Another website has his name alongside the flag of Northern Ireland and describes him as British, so whether Kunding existed or was indeed Irish looks to remain unknown.
One player we know much more about is Paddy Sloan. In 1948, Milan picked up Sloan for £10,000 or around £305,000 in today’s money. He hit the ground running and scored nine goals in his first season. After spending three years in Italy, Sloan played for four different sides on the peninsula between 19 and 1951. Milan, Torino, Udinese, and Brescia. He even earned himself the nickname ‘The Tiger’.
Well respected during his time abroad, he was twice picked as Serie A’s best inside forward. The Lurgan native made three appearances for the IFA’s national team and two for the FAI’s. Both associations selected players from all over the island at the time. It would be nearly 30 years until another Irishman took the plunge.
In 1980, Liam Brady played in a Cup Winner’s Cup tie against Juventus for Arsenal. He impressed the opposition so much that they decided to go and sign him. He came in as their first foreign player when the ban on such transfers was eventually lifted, for £500,000. Juve chose well and what followed in the ensuing seven seasons would be the most successful stage of Brady’s career. With back-to-back Scudettos in 1980/81 and 1981/82, along with scoring the goal that won the title in 1982, Brady is by far and away the most successful Irish export to the peninsula.
Going on to play for Sampdoria and Inter, the attacking midfielder couldn’t replicate the highs of his time at Juventus but got to play with some of the great players of that era, including Dino Zoff, Trevor Francis, Roberto Mancini, and legendary Italian striker Paolo Rossi. Scoring 24 goals across his seven years in Serie A. The Dubliner is still revered to this day, especially at Sampdoria, where he was presented to supporters at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris in 2021.
Himself and English forward Trevor Francis struck up quite a partnership and were certainly trailblazers for foreign players in Italy’s top flight. The RTÉ documentary on the career of ‘Chippy’, entitled Liam Brady: The Irishman Abroad, is well worth a watch for an insight into the life and times of an icon of Irish football.
Juventus’ Greatest Player of All Time
In football, things don’t always go as planned. Spare a thought for poor Ronnie O’Brien, who knows that all too well. A cautionary tale for young professionals to be wary of the pitfalls of perhaps hitting the big time too young. Goal Italia describes him as “Juventus’ strangest purchase,” but there’s more to it than that. He was no doubt a gifted footballer, winning a European title with Ireland’s U16s in 1998. O’Brien was on the lookout for a new side and when his agent sent a show reel to the continent’s biggest sides the following year, Juve president Vittorio Chiusano offered him a contract.
Swapping the Middlesborough reserves for the Bianconeri was quite the step up for a 20-year-old with no first-team experience. A five-year deal to play with the likes of Filippo Inzaghi, Zinedine Zidane, Edgar Davids, and Alessandro Del Piero under the guidance of Carlo Ancelotti would be most young footballer’s dreams, but on August 5, 1999, that was Ronnie O’Brien’s reality.
The Bray native’s one and only match in black and white stripes was a 5-1 victory over Russian side Rostov in the UEFA Intertoto Cup. He appeared for all thirteen minutes in the second half but seemed to have had a decent game.
Obviously, he didn’t do enough to impress Ancelloti and was subsequently sent out on loan to four clubs between 1999 and 2002, including Crotone and Lecco in the lower reaches of Italian football. In fairness to O’Brien, he then went on to play over a hundred games for FC Dallas in the U.S. and carved out a decent career in the MLS. While he wasn’t exactly the next Liam Brady the Old Lady thought they were getting, he did well enough to get himself nominated for Time Person of the Century.
No conversation about Ronnie O’Brien (probably much to his annoyance) would be complete without a mention of the stunt that almost bagged him a prize bigger than the Ballon’Dor.
With the award of Juventus’ greatest player in history already tucked in his back pocket, O’Brien set his sights on the big one: Time Person of the Century. E-mails were circulated in the run-up and before he knew it, O’Brien was at the at the top of the pole with over 57,000 votes to his name.
That’s where he remained for twelve glorious hours, crashing the voting portal in the process. Unbelievably, TIME took him out of the running with the famous, if not harsh, line, “Whimsical candidates will not be counted.” Albert Einstein ultimately picked up the award, despite not making a single appearance for Juventus.
Sometimes life isn’t fair, is it?
‘Baby Irish’
So that blip is out of the way, and Ireland’s record goalscorer is about to bring us another success story packed full of trophies and goals, right?
Well, not quite. The Robbie Keane we know and love wasn’t who he is now in the year 2000. Slightly inexperienced and only 20 years old, Inter president Massimo Moratti nonetheless decided to take on Keane as another option in the wake of Ronaldo’s knee injury. ‘Baby Irish’, as Inter supporters christened him, made Coventry £13 million in profit. Starting the season well, the Tallaght man scored his first goal for the Nerrazzuri in the Supercoppa Italiana against Lazio. He scored just twice more before, in classic Italian football fashion, Inter flung a sizeable spanner into the works.
A loss on the opening day to Reggina was enough for Moratti to sack Marcello Lippi and bring in Marco Tardelli. An instant dislike was taken to Keane, who featured just six times altogether for Inter and found himself back in England with Leeds within six months. Keane was just one of many to fall foul of ‘Pazza Inter‘ back then.
Moratti remained a big admirer and claimed it was one of his biggest regrets, saying: “I admit Robbie Keane is a big regret. The other day, I was watching him play for Tottenham on the television. He had a perfect game. He had a thousand touches and not one mistake. It drives me mad!”
Starlets Determined to Change the Story
Admittedly, it’s been a while since we’ve had a true success in Il Campionato Piú Bello del Mondo. Cast your eye to the Mediterranean today, however, and you should catch a glimpse of some of the most exciting talent Ireland is producing today. But why now? How come the next generation of Irish players is suddenly eyeing up careers across Italy? There are a few reasons.
Apart from the weather, obviously.
The biggest and most obvious is Brexit. No, it never dies. The rules around it mean it is much more difficult for Irish youngsters to move across the Irish Sea before their eighteenth birthday. Once the U.K. left the EU, no players from the Republic of Ireland who were under 18 could sign for a club in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, or Gibraltar. Many young players ready to join academies had to look elsewhere.
To this Italian club, say Grazie Mille! Over the past few years, a steady flow of starlets from our shores have been arriving at clubs from Inter to Udinese. In addition, players with Albanian or Irish heritage are possibly more open to moves to Italy. Serie A is worshipped in Albania the same way the Premier League is in Ireland and the vast number of Albanian expats on the peninsula helps matters. Kevin Zefi and Justin Ferizaj are two examples.
Football has changed since the days when football hopefuls arriving in England had just the locals to rival for a contract. At your first trial, a Brazilian might easily greet you by performing keepy-uppies with one ball while holding another on his head. You might be tempted to fly home and try your luck in the Irish academy system, just to remember it doesn’t exist. So you look abroad and see something interesting in the distance.
Who to Keep Your Eye On:
Festy Ebosele
Switch over to TNT on a Sunday this season and you might spot Festy Ebosele tearing down the wing in a black and white kit. No, not that one, not yet anyway, but the one of Udinese. Having joined the Zebrette in July 2022, the Enniscorthy native has worked his way into their line-up and has stayed there. 21 starts from 31 appearances last season as a right back mean he is the most featured Irish player in Serie A since the aforementioned Brady.
It’s not difficult to see why. The 22-year-old’s electric pace on the right is a danger going forward but he always seems to have time to track back too. Udinese are a solid team and will aim for mid-table safety this year. New Ireland boss Heimir Halgrimsson would do well to increase Ebosele’s three caps, a number far too small for a player of his quality.
Justin Ferizaj
19-year-old Ferizaj put pen to paper with Frosinone in July, ahead of the new season. Hoping to take the next step with the Ciociari after coming through the ranks with Shamrock Rovers. A dynamic midfielder, Ferizaj likes to pull the strings in the centre of the park. Sampdoria approached him but he rejected the offer and will most likely join the youth ‘Primavera’ side to start off. If he impresses, you could see him line out in Serie B for Eusebio Di Francesco’s side. A smart move for a young man with plenty to offer. He’ll hope a few good performances might earn him a call-up to the U21 national team.
Senan Mullen
Another young man born in 2005 Senan Mullen swapped Dundalk for Torino back in February. With a single cap at U18 level, he is another midfielder hoping to progress in the Primavera. The Cavan man moved to the Granata for €50,000. He had four appearances for Dundalk’s senior side before making five with the Torino youth side since his move. A starting spot is obviously his objective for the season.
Naj Razi
Como are Serie A’s newest arrivals and are preparing for their first season in a long time. They want to make Como famous for something other than the fact that George Clooney lives there, with the support of minority shareholders Thierry Henry and Cesc Fabregas. Part of this project is 17-year-old Naj Razi. He scored a free kick against league leaders Cremonese in the Primavera 2 after arriving lakeside during the winter transfer window.
Fabregas also happens to be the head coach so there is plenty of football experience at the club. Razi has high hopes for the future, stating his goal for the future is “to be known worldwide.” Hopefully, a first full season at Como will help him work towards that dream.
Ed McJannet
English-born but playing for Ireland at the youth level, Ed McJannet could yet represent either country at the senior level. 20 years old, McJannet has been at Lecce since January 2023. He collected a Primavera winners medal two years ago. In July’s preseason training camp, senior coach Luca Gotti was evaluating him in order to determine whether to include him in the Serie A first team. The left-footed midfielder chipped in with six goals and seven assists while making 33 appearances and his ability to play a variety of roles intrigues Gotti. McJannet could be about to have a breakout season. Watch this space.
Kevin Zefi
Irish-Albanian Zefi has been plying his trade in Italy since 2021. He caught Inter’s eye and he stayed with their youth sides for two and a half years. Now nineteen years of age, he has decided he needs a new challenge and, in January, swapped Milan for Rome and joined Roma’s U19s on a free transfer.
Unfortunately, he has since made just one appearance for the Giallorossi. Another Rovers academy product, he must prove his mettle this season if he hopes to continue his climb to the top of Italian football. Regular football is essential for his development and from an Irish point of view, we can only hope he manages to get his name on the team sheet more often this year.
Hope For the Future
All of these players and more have set themselves up perfectly for great seasons with their respective clubs. Heimir Halgrimsson may be making some trips to Italy in the coming months to cast an eye over some of the most exciting prospects Irish football has to offer. Going all the way back to the enigma that is Matts Kunding to the present day via ‘Chippy’ Brady, Ireland has always had a connection with Italy that in football and in life is much more than Brady’s favourite takeaway.
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