As in the glory days: Parma once again ‘packed’ with Argentines | OneFootball

In Parma, it no longer comes as a surprise to hear Argentine accents in every corner of the locker room. Nor to see a mate passed from hand to hand or hear cumbia in the gym. What is starting to draw attention is the scale of the phenomenon: six footballers from the country—“six and a half,” they correct from within— live together in the squad of one of Italy’s historic clubs. In an interview with LA NACION, players Mateo Pellegrino, Mariano Troilo, Christian Ordóñez and Franco Carboni share the inside story of the sizable Argentine “pack.”

“Six and a half. Cremaschi is here,” Troilo cuts in as soon as the conversation begins, reminding everyone that among the six Argentines in the squad — also made up of Lautaro Valenti and Nahuel Estévez — there is also Benjamín Cremaschi, born in the United States but the son of Argentine parents. Pellegrino nods at the correction.

The laughter comes quickly in the group and sets the tone for an interview that, more than formal, turns into a conversation among teammates who know each other by heart. The scene repeats throughout the chat: overlapping answers, inside jokes, knowing glances.

Parma returned to Serie A in 2024 after winning the second division title, in a steady process in which Argentines had already played a leading role before this crop. Valenti, the one who has been at the club the longest, completing five straight years, and Estévez were part of the team that brought the club back to the elite of Italian football. Back then there were also other Argentines such as Leandro Chichizola and Cristian Ansaldi. Today, they are the team in Europe with the most Argentines in their squad, along with Atlético de Madrid (6).

None of the four — Pellegrino, Ordóñez, Carboni and Troilo himself — speaks of major difficulties adapting. Quite the opposite: the process seems to have been softened by the presence of the others. “The adaptation was pretty quick. Football helped me a lot,” says Pellegrino, the team’s top scorer in Serie A with eight goals and the club’s leading scorer this season with 11.

In Ordóñez’s case, the move also meant a change of context: the midfielder arrived in Italy at just 21, after winning the title with Vélez in Argentina in 2024, where he had continuity and a key role. “Pele helped me a lot when I arrived, with the language, with the city. Then I adapted little by little.”

Carboni, a 23-year-old left back who recently had his birthday, is the latest to join, and he sums it up with a phrase that sparks another round of smiles during the video call: “For me it was incredibly easy thanks to them. It’s the first time I’ve been around so many Argentines, and it was really nice for me.” He also highlighted the club’s facilities, which “have everything needed to grow and improve as a player.”

Troilo completes the thought with a more personal view: “Being far from family works a little against you, but the guys were amazing from the very first moment. It all became much easier.” The 22-year-old center back is the most expensive sale in Belgrano’s history (€7.2 million according to Transfermarkt).

Parma is not just any destination for Argentines. Throughout its recent history, names such as Hernán Crespo, Juan Sebastián Verón, Ariel Ortega and Roberto Sensini left a deep mark on the club, during a period in which it was able to compete and win titles at the European level, such as the Europa Leagues (then the UEFA Cup) in 1995 and 1999.

Parma is not just any destination for Argentines. Throughout its recent history, names such as Hernán Crespo, Juan Sebastián Verón, Ariel Ortega and Roberto Sensini left a deep mark on the club, during a period in which it was able to compete and win titles at the European level, such as the Europa Leagues (then the UEFA Cup) in 1995 and 1999.

That history still carries weight in the fans’ imagination and also in the locker room. “I knew a lot of Argentines had passed through here and that the club had a glorious era,” admits Pellegrino, who took the floor when the questions were general. The rest nod. But theory turns into belonging when they step into the club.

—The all-time top scorer in Parma history? —asks LA NACION.

—Crespo —all four answer in unison.

There is no doubt in the response. Ninety-four goals for the Argentine legend. Nor in the reference. However, far from feeling pressure because of that past, the group lives it as motivation. “I don’t feel pressure. You do know the bar is high because Argentines have done well here. You want to keep leaving a good image,” explains Pellegrino. “When we step onto the pitch, we want to give what they gave,” adds Troilo, who is also called “Nano.”

Outside football, the routine changes. Parma is not Milan or Rome. It is fighting in mid-table after being promoted two years ago. It is, as Pellegrino describes it, “a little town.” “The city is very calm, you can go out for a walk with no problem,” says Ordóñez, who is often shortened to “Ordo.” “The distances are very short. In ten minutes you can be anywhere,” adds the 24-year-old No. 9.

That slower pace also shapes their day-to-day lives, in which they usually move around as a group, inside and outside the locker room. “We move more like a pack,” Pellegrino says bluntly. And he adds: “In general we all have very similar lives, because we all have girlfriends, we get home and our girl is there waiting for us. Very quiet lives too.”

Argentine customs remain intact: mate, barbecues and get-togethers at home. Even virtual FIFA tournaments on PlayStation. “We all play Pro Clubs together,” Carboni said. The popular game mode allows friends to create a club in which each controls one player. The organization has its own logic too: a WhatsApp group decides who is available to play when they have a free afternoon.

—What’s the team called?

—El Nine Gato FC —Ordóñez replies, laughing.

The explanation comes right away: an inside reference to a viral TikTok video about the Nine shopping mall in Moreno, the area where Ordóñez, who came through at Vélez, is from, in which it was called the “most hood in Argentina.”

They also export culture to the locker room, not just mate, which they got several Italians in the squad to try, but music too. “We got a lot of them into T y M. ‘Amor de vago’ plays in the gym,” Pellegrino reveals.

That sense of belonging also received formal recognition: Pellegrino, along with Lautaro Valenti and Nahuel Estévez, were honored last year by the AFA as ambassadors of Argentine football abroad. “It was news that surprised me, and I took it with a lot of pride,” the forward recalls.

As in any group, roles are clearly defined. Though no one escapes the teasing. “The most annoying is Carbo,” Pellegrino declares. Ordóñez and Troilo nod. The latter adds: “He’s annoying, not a joker.” The one in the spotlight, Franco Carboni, replies laughing that “maybe” and points out that Nano Troilo is above all the victim of his jokes. “Every morning he comes at me,” clarifies the Córdoba-born player.

At the other end, the most serious one also has a clear name. “Pellegrino,” they all say at the same time. They also mention Nahuel Estévez, whom they sometimes “drive crazy” as the oldest of the Argentine group, at 30. The asado, an unavoidable ritual for Argentines, also has a person in charge: “I do it,” the striker admits.

—Does he make good asado?

—Just okay —Troilo cuts in jokingly.

They even have a mate ranking. Ordóñez lists it precisely: “Top one, Mateo. Then Nano, then me… and then Carbo.” Estévez brings up the rear of the ranking. “I don’t know if he’s the worst. It’s just that this year he hasn’t prepared a single mate,” Pellegrino jokes.

Language is another daily challenge, although there too the group serves as support. Franco Carboni had no issues, since he finished developing at Inter from a young age and played for several Italian clubs (six counting Parma): “I’ve been in Italy for a long time, I speak it and I have no problem.” The others’ case is different.

“I understand it pretty well, but I find it really hard to speak,” admits Christian Ordóñez. Mariano Troilo agrees: “I understand it well, but when it comes time to speak, it gets complicated.” Both arrived in the same transfer window from Argentine football, in their first club change after coming through at Vélez and Belgrano, respectively.

In many cases, the process has become more practical than academic. Ordóñez explains it with a smile: “At first we were taking classes, but we didn’t understand much… now I listen and try to learn day by day.” In that context, the presence of several Argentines once again becomes key. “If one of us doesn’t understand something, we help each other,” he says.

“We’re in a favorable context,” adds Pellegrino, who admits that he “speaks very well now.” Even the coaching staff helps with the adaptation: if an instruction is not clear in Italian, Spanish becomes a fallback, thanks to the young coach — the same age as the most experienced Estévez — born in Spain, Carlos Cuesta García, former assistant to Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.

Behind the group, each one carries his own path. Carboni, after several loans in Italy and his unsuccessful stint at River, is looking for stability. “I’m trying to get continuity. I’d like to stay here,” he admits. And precisely about his brief spell with River, which he joined at Martín Demichelis’s request but left after Marcelo Gallardo’s arrival, without making his debut, he was clear: “It was something quick, but it wasn’t bad. Everything was always handled properly.”

Pellegrino, for his part, says: “Yes, I’m in the best moment of my career. This league is very competitive and being able to score goals here is important.” About a possible international call-up, with the chance to play for Spain’s national team, he avoids making any firm statement: “I’m focused on the day to day.”

The son of Mauricio Pellegrino, the coach who won an international title with Lanús, he does not lose sight of what is happening on the other side of the ocean. “It matters a lot to me because it’s family. I always want the best for him,” he says. However, the distance imposes limits: “The time difference makes it hard, but the first thing I do when I wake up is check the result or the highlights.” His father’s current moment, having recently made history with Granate at the Maracanã, also moves him: “Pride, because it’s something he had been chasing. Total happiness for him and for all my family.”

As for the national-team world, Troilo remembered his time with Argentina last year with emotion. “It was crazy. Seeing Messi in person, training with him… I couldn’t believe it.” In that context he also went through a situation he recalls with some embarrassment: some time earlier he had sent messages to the captain after the 2021 Copa América triumph. “I had sent him everything when he became champion. Then, when I had him there in front of me, I got nervous and didn’t want him to see the messages,” he says with a laugh. “They were going to make fun of me for it.” And about Messi, he adds: “Very humble, very simple.”

Parma is fighting in the middle of the table in Italy and, although it has moved away from the relegation spots, it is going through a bad run of six matches without a win, with four draws and two defeats.

The conversation went on amid interruptions, banter and the group’s laughter. At one point, Carboni tries to answer seriously and stops, cracking up at his teammates’ faces. “It’s really hard like this,” he says, unable to finish the sentence. The scene sums up everything. Parma has six Argentines. Or “six and a half.” But above all, it has a group that turned distance into closeness, adaptation into something collective, and the locker room into a small extension of Argentina. “Having so many Argentines makes you feel a bit more at home

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.