Western Sydney Wanderers FC have confirmed the re-signing of young forward Alex Badolato for the next three Isuzu UTE A-League seasons on a professional deal.
The 18-year-old striker has been part of the Wanderers since the U13s team where he has worked his way up to playing senior football.
At 16, Badolato signed a scholarship deal with the club and went on to make 19 appearances for the A-Leagues squad while plying his trade in the club’s National Premier League 1 squad.
Over the last two seasons, Badolato has been part of a number of Australian squads including the Subway Young Socceroos recent AFC Asian Cup campaign and U18s Four Nations Tournament in Portugal.
The 18-year-old striker has been part of the Wanderers since the U13s squad where he has worked his way up to senior football.
Wanderers head coach Marko Rudan said he was proud to retain Alex for the next three A-Leagues seasons.
“We are very proud to continue to work with Alex over the next three seasons as we look to continue to integrate him into our A-Leagues team,” said Rudan.
“Alex has been part of a number of Wanderers squads through the Academy and knows what it take to represent the club. We look forward to continuing to be part of his development journey in the seasons to come.”
Badolato said he was ready to continue to help the team over the next three years.
“It’s a great weight off your shoulders (the new deal), to see that the coaches have given me that sort of confidence is really good for me because now I can knuckle down and focus on the coming season,” said Badolato.
“At first (first team football) was a bit difficult, as you’re training and playing with men which is a lot different to kids your own age. But, the boys integrated me into training really well and made sure I was involved in everything as well. I never felt left out so my confidence grew from there.
“The boss (head coach Marko Rudan) has also been really good to me. He is always talking to me and helping me understand what I have to do to get better and get more game time. He helps me to really know what I have to do.
“For the next three years, hopefully you can see a lot more of me on the field and a fair few goals and assists. I want to help the team a lot more and hopefully make the members and fans happy.”
