Transfer market: the young Azzurri exodus continues — and it might be good news
From Leoni to Koleosho, 15 Italian under-23 talents already play in foreign leagues. Italian football's cultural revolution travels on budget airlines.
For decades the Italian footballer was the last church-tower loyalist: you grew up, played and retired within national borders. The summer of 2025 broke the spell: Liverpool, Brighton, Atletico Madrid, Nottingham Forest. And this summer's window promises to stretch the list further.
Fifteen Italian under-23 talents already play regularly abroad. Some read it as Serie A's failure to keep its jewels. But there is another reading: Italian kids have finally stopped being afraid, and foreign clubs have stopped treating Italian academies as a second-tier market.
For the national team it is an asset: players shaped by different tactical schools, used to higher intensity, ready sooner. Our job is to keep them in sight. That is why we exist.