Sometimes you just don't know when life's next lesson will be.

 

For Cosmos B midfielder Giuseppe Barone, he can thank a veteran Uruguayan forward, Walter Alexis Invernizzi, for taking him under his wing when the Cosmos B midfielder played with Sangiovannese in Italy's Serie D in 2015-16.

 

That's right, Serie D.

 

It was under Invernizzi mentorship that the Queens, N.Y., native learned to take his game to a different level.

 

"I was young and foreign, and he was older and foreign, so he showed me a little bit of patience more than other guys would," Barone said. "He tried to help me out because he understood the adjustment. It was just great being there. It's a different level."

 

Serie D was stocked with players who had competed in Serie A and B and some South Americans. So, the learning curve was great.

 

"It was good for me," Barone said. "Every day I got used to realizing that every ball counts and putting in work matters because before that you would work hard when you come on the field, but you don't work that hard, that extra. I think that's what was important for me when I got there. I had to do a lot of extra [work] if I wanted to make a career out of this."

 

Sangiovannese is located in the Tuscany region of Italy, about 40 miles from Florence.

 

Barone, 23, said his overall experience there was "fantastic."

 

And of course, being immersed in such a consuming soccer culture as Italy was second to none.

 

"You know how Italy is. Soccer is everything," Barone said. "Even with the economic crisis going on, the biggest issue we have is not going to the World Cup this year."

 

The 23-year-old attacking midfielder has brought those lessons learned to Cosmos B.

 

He has started the National Premier Soccer League team's last two matches, including Sunday's 6-1 win over Greater Lowell NPSL FC at Columbia University. As a central midfielder, Barone played an aggressive match, winning balls in the middle of the park, stripping Lowell players of the ball and linking up with Wojciech Wojcik on two goals.

 

"The first time we played together was Tuesday against Brooklyn," Barone said of last week's 2-1 victory over the Brooklyn Italians. "Then in practice, we're trying to stick together, try to get on the same page. We had a conversation before the game to try to work off each other. At the end of the day, my job is to find him and make sure he scores goals."

 

The 5-9, 153-lb. Barone is a converted forward who has made a relatively smooth transition to attacking midfielder.

 

"I was comfortable," he said. "They gave me instructions and I just had to do my job. The guys around me make it a lot easier. When I turn around and have Danny [Szetela] and Rafa [Garcia] behind me. it makes life a helluva lot easier."

 

Cosmos B head coach Carlos Mendes has liked what he has seen, calling Barone "a bright spot for us."

 

"He has been one of the most improved players from where he came in to this point," he said. "We spoke about it when he got an opportunity to start against Brooklyn. His training has been excellent. His attitude has been excellent. His work rate is tremendous. He puts himself in good spots. He's played in a couple of positions, even off the bench, at outside back at times when we've had a couple of people go down. Everywhere we’ve put him he's solid.

 

"And then his work rate defensively. He'll make it difficult on the opponent to do things. If you continue to do that, you're going to be successful. He's a player with a good future. He has been tremendous in the two games he has started for us. I'm sure he'll help us a lot more along the way. I'm very, very encouraged by his performance."

 

Before continuing one thing you should know: He is not related to Cosmos senior vice president Joe Barone. Some observers and fans once thought he was Barone's son. Actually, there is another Giuseppe Barone who plays for the Italians and Long Island University Brooklyn who is Joe Barone's son.

 

When the topic was brought up to the Cosmos B midfielder, Barone laughed.

 

"It's funny," he said. "All the time I'm asked, 'Oh, you're related to Joe Barone from the Brooklyn Italians?' I'm like, 'I know him, but I'm not related to him at all.' "

 

He has played with Sal Barone, the son of the Cosmos VP, in the Cosmos Academy.

 

The two Gisueppe Barones tussled in the game last week. When Cosmos B was forced to play with 10 men, Barone was put at right back.

 

"We were kind of going at it a little bit," Barone said.

 

Don't worry, there were no problems with the space-time continuum when they met.

 

"Nah, not that I know of, at least," he said with a smile.

 

Barone's main concern is getting Cosmos B (3-0-0, 9 points) into the playoffs. The North Atlantic Conference Division leaders can take another step against TSF Academy FC (0-0-1, 1) at DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, N.J. on Thursday at 7 p.m.

 

"They were pretty solid last year,” he said. “They were not an easy team to beat. I don't think any team is going to make it easy for us. Every team is going to come and make it hard for us. I don't expect an easy game at all."

 

With a 10-game regular-season schedule, every game matters.

 

"Of course, we want to win and pick up points because we want to win the conference and go on," Barone said. "Considering our name, we have the responsibility. We have to win every game.

 

"I think our team doesn’t have a limit. We can be as good as we want [or]decide to be. That's why it’s important for us to work hard and win the next game we are playing in."