Valencia CF enjoyed their best season so far under the stewardship of Roberto Lazaró in the 2027/28 campaign. And the manager was delighted to see his approach to blooding youngsters was resulting in plenty of progression.
Youthful Santos Futebol Clube claimed the club's first Brazilian title in 24 years as they stormed to Série A success in November 2028. Manager Robinho Lazaró now had to ensure they kept hold of their best youngsters to try and defend that title and aim for their first Copa Libertadores Final since 2020.
Atalanta surprised everyone, including their manager, as a sublime end-of-season surge saw them climb into the European places and finish 3rd in Serie A in 1997 (2026). The challenge now was for Roberto Lombardi to strengthen his squad and hold onto his exciting youngsters.
Valencia CF's team of young, predominantly homegrown talents continued to exceed expectations as they split LaLiga's "big three" for the first time in Roberto Lazaró's fourth season at the club. But Lazaró was looking for some of his hot prospects to step up in the next couple of campaigns.
Rapidly improving youngsters led Santos a first top-5 finish under Robinho Lazaró and the Copa Libertadores semis in 2027. They also dominated the awards for best young players, which proved the serious amount of potential at the club.
Atalanta BC mixed it with the big boys of Serie A and finished just outside the top half in their first season in the top flight. And the club's board backed manager Roberto Lombardi by agreeing to his requests for improved training and youth facilities, youth recruitment and junior coaching over the summer of 1996 (2025).
After 103 years at their historic home, Valencia Club de Fútbol bid farewell to La Mestalla as they ushered in a new era at the 55,000-capacity Nuevo Mestalla, but they would do so without their inspirational homegrown captain.
Robinho Lazaró was pretty happy with the progress that Santos CF was making. They were also progressing off the field as infrastructure improvements saw Santos complete perfect 20 youth recruitment, junior coaching and training facilities with 18 youth facilities.
Atalanta secured an immediate return to the best league in the world by blowing away Serie B with over 100 goals and points. But they faced a big step up in quality if they were to meet the board's objective of surviving in Serie A - which wasn't helped by a poor financial situation.
A strong second season in Valencia saw Roberto Lazaró lead Los Che to 4th place and Champions League football for the final campaign at their legendary La Mestalla home. But Lazaró was keen to impress a sense of realism at the club, especially given how far clear the big three remained.
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