👀 Modric, KDB, CR7: When did a top star last join Serie A in their prime?🤔 | OneFootball

Luka Modrić is a new AC Milan player. The Croatian champion has signed with the Rossoneri after the end of his incredible spell at Real Madrid, a club with which he won (multiple times) everything possible, including a Ballon d'Or.

His arrival in Milan has divided Diavolo fans, with some grateful to be able to admire a player of Modrić’s class, and others who believe that at almost 40 years old, this was a move that could have been avoided.

Modrić lands in Italy just a few weeks after De Bruyne, who at 34 chose Napoli. At this point, a spontaneous question arises: when was the last time a star player—in his prime—chose Serie A?

🤔 From CR7 to Di Maria and Higuain, why not them?

You can only start with His Majesty Cristiano Ronaldo. Here we know that many fans of the Portuguese phenomenon will have something to say, because in Turin we still saw a dominant player, capable of scoring 101 goals in 134 matches wearing the black and white shirt. But CR7’s peak was at Real Madrid, no question.

📸 MARCO BERTORELLO

The same goes for Angel Di Maria, while others like Tevez and Lukaku came to our league to relaunch themselves after difficult years.

It’s a different story for Higuain and de Ligt. Pipita was Napoli’s big signing in 2013, but he was still Benzema’s backup at Real. The Dutchman, on the other hand, chose Italy for his big leap after Ajax, but at that time he was more of a prospect than a finished champion.

🔙 Back to 2008

To find the last time a star player chose Serie A at the peak of his career, you have to go back to 2008, when Massimo Moratti convinced Samuel Eto'o to join the Nerazzurri. A sensational signing, which brought to José Mourinho’s court the man who had decided that year’s Champions League final with a goal.

📸 Claudio Villa - 2011 Getty Images

The following season, Eto'o was echoed by Ibrahimović, who after just twelve months at Barcelona decided to return to Italy, to Milan, where he was immediately crucial for the Diavolo’s 18th Scudetto win.

📸 OLIVIER MORIN - 2011 AFP

Those were different times, no doubt about it. Today, Serie A simply cannot keep up with the giants of other European and Arab leagues. Just think of Liverpool, which in this transfer window has already spent 250 million on Wirtz, Kerkez, and Frimpong, and is ready to shell out another 150 for Isak. For Italian clubs, then, all that remains are the memories of those years. Modrić and De Bruyne are more than welcome—champions whose class is always an added value, at any age. It just makes you think, though, that sometimes it would be nice to go back to when Serie A was everyone’s first choice.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.

📸 Francois Nel - 2025 Getty Images