The Serie A represents the top level of professional football in Italy and the league has long been home to some of the best African footballers, while their influence has continued to grow year after year.
In recent times, Serie A clubs are now investing heavily in African talents, with several players making high-profile moves after standing out in other leagues.
Here are the five most expensive African signings in Serie A history.
Victor Osimhen (€80 million, Napoli)
Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen tops this list as the most expensive African footballer in Serie A history following his €80 million move from French club Lille to Napoli in the summer of 2020. The transfer also makes him the most expensive Nigerian player of all time and the second most expensive African transfer of all time.
Osimhen played a key role in Napoli’s historic league-winning campaign in the 2022-23 season, where he also won the golden boot award. However, he left the club on an initial loan deal in 2024 to join Galatasaray, before joining the club on a €75 million permanent deal last summer.
Victor Osimhen has no plan for Istanbulspor takeover despite the reports
Achraf Hakimi (€40 million, Inter Milan)
Achraf Hakimi ranks as the second most expensive African footballer in Serie A history following his €40 million move from Real Madrid in 2020.
The Moroccan right-back spent just one season in the Italian league, but he made a major impact, playing a key role in Inter’s Serie A triumph and earning a spot in the team of the season.
He left the club the following summer to join French club Paris Saint-Germain, where he has now cemented his status as one of the best defenders in the world.
Geoffrey Kondogbia (€31 million, Inter Milan)
Central African Republic midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia joined Inter Milan for a reported fee of about €31 million back in 2015, ranking him as the third most expensive African footballer in the league.
The Nerazzuri beat fierce competition from city rivals AC Milan to his signature from AS Monaco and he spent two years at the club before initially joining Valencia on loan in 2017 and them on a permanent deal the following summer.
El Bilal Toure (€30 million, Atalanta)
Malian forward El Bilal Toure joined Atlanta in the summer of 2023 in a club-record deal worth up to €30 million and is ranked as the fourth most expensive African footballer in the league.
However, his move to the Italian club has not gone according to plan as he struggled in his debut season and has spent the last two campaigns on loan away from the club, including a loan spell at Turkish club Besiktas this season.
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Franck Kessie (€28 million, AC Milan)
Ivory Coast captain Franck Kessie joined AC Milan on an initial two-year loam deal from Atalanta in 2017, with the deal then made permanent in the summer of 2019.
Kessie enjoyed success at the Rossoneri, where be cemented his status as a club legend and captained them to the league title in the 2021-22 season, before leaving at the end of that campaign to join Spanish giants Barcelona.
