A fierce Italian passion for football is gripping Ferguson Park as Tauranga's junior footballers learn what it takes for silky skills and a passionate intensity from two of Italy's top junior coaches.

Empoli FC Under-10 coach Alessandro Limone and AFC Fiorentina Under-16 coach Matteo Fazzini are currently helping develop and inspire the next wave of Kiwi footballers through SIS – Soccer Italian Style.

Soccer Italian Style coaches Matteo Fazzini and Alessandro Limone with the students at Ferguson Park today. Photo: Tracy Hardy.

Invited out by Top Flight Soccer Academy director Altan Ramadan for a second consecutive year, the two coaches spent last week in Auckland coaching players between 7 and 11-years-old before shifting their focus to Tauranga.

Alessandro says the focus is on using drills and techniques specific to the Italian style of football – with a big emphasis on focus on ball skills and smaller classes.

'In Italy with our team as a professional team we want intensity. We want one ball each kid and not big numbers of kids with only one coach and maybe from eight to 12,” says Alessandro.

And he hopes the players are enjoying themselves and will take away what is needed to progress to higher honours.

'They want to improve themselves and have a passion inside for football.

'They need to play all the time, not just a couple of months. They need to play from September to June like in Italy.”

Top Flight Soccer Academy coach Earle Thomas says it is fantastic to have such higher calibre coaching on offer, but on the flip side is disappointed in a lack of coaches taking the opportunity.

'We aren't the best country in the game but we have some of the best coaches going around and they don't come,” says Earle.

'This is extremely valuable to coaches.”

The former All Whites captain says the children are thoroughly enjoying the difference in playing style with many keen to return the following day.

'I think they just learn the importance of the ball in the game of football. You can't win if you don't have the ball and you can't have the ball if you can't control it.

'It's fantastic; we can't get coaches of this quality every day of the week. They are coaching the top sides in Italy.”