There were incredible scenes on Thursday morning (AEST) as Socceroos gun Alessandro Circati sealed promotion to Italy’s top flight with his Parma side.
A 1-1 draw with Bari – in which Circati played every minute – guaranteed Parma’s promotion given they are seven points clear of third-placed Venezia with two games to play.
They are also on the verge of winning the Serie B title thanks to a three-point lead over second-placed Como.
20-year-old Circati has been a key figure for Parma this campaign, with the centre-back featuring 31 times this season across all competitions.
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Circati missed out on the Socceroos’ poor Asian Cup campaign in January, with Socceroos coach Graham Arnold omitting the one-cap international in the hope that Parma would release him for the Olyroos U-23 Asian cup campaign last month that doubled as Olympic qualifiers.
But his importance to the Crocati meant the Italian side refused to allow him to join the Australian under-23 side – though he has now been rewarded with a place in Italy’s top flight next season.
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He’ll be hoping to compete against Cristian Volpato, the talented 20-year-old who is in an international selection tug of war between the Socceroos and Italy. Volpato has played 20 times in Serie A this season for Sassuolo, but the Neroverdi are in a dire relegation battle – stuck second-last with four games to play.
He’s not the only Australian hunting promotion to a top European division this season, with Massimo Luongo and Cameron Burgess this week moving just one point away from reaching the Premier League with Ipswich Town.
Centre-back Harry Souttar’s Leicester City confirmed their return to the Premier League at the first time of asking by topping the Championship ahead of Ipswich Town, but the Australian has been in virtual exile this season and looks set to leave the club when the transfer window opens.
Jackson Irvine and Connor Metcalfe lead Bundesliga 2 with FC St Pauli after Irvine scored the only goal in their win on the weekend. With two games to play, St Pauli is guaranteed at least a playoff spot in Germany’s promotion race, though automatic promotion is also in their reach.
Promotion, meanwhile, ends a three-year stint in Serie B for Parma, who were relegated from the top flight in 2020/21 after a nightmare campaign featuring just three wins.
The club was in the fourth tier as recently as 2016 amid a financial crisis.