Although Rasmus Hojlund, Kim Min-jae, Andre Onana and Sandro Tonali secured big-money moves away from Italy this summer, Serie A has still seen an influx of exciting new signings.
Let’s take a look at some of the best transfers of the 2023 summer transfer window.
Marcus Thuram – Inter Milan
Inter Milan continued their impressive transfer policy of signing top players for cut-price deals with the addition of Marcus Thuram.
The French striker was one of the hottest free agents in the market, and the Nerazzurri overcame a host of European giants, including arch-rivals AC Milan, for his signature.
Touted as the replacement for Edin Dzeko, Thuram is making the Champions League finalists brag that they have got an absolute bargain of a transfer after getting off to a flying start to life in Italy.
The 26-year-old has seamlessly struck a great partnership with the Inter skipper Lautaro Martinez – as if they were playing together for ages – while netting a goal and two assists in three games in Serie A.
Romelu Lukaku – AS Roma
Romelu Lukaku was one of the high-profile transfers in Serie A this summer after completing a loan switch to AS Roma.
However, what preceded was a long and winding transfer saga.
Inter Milan first appeared to the potential suitors for the Belgian, whom Chelsea were looking to ship out for a considerable transfer fee to mitigate their Financial Fair Play restrictions.
The Nerazzurri soon discovered that Lukaku had changed his mind to join fellow rivals Juventus and walked away from their pursuit.
With the Bianconeri, their financial limitations were a big hurdle in reaching an agreement with Chelsea, allowing Roma to enter the mix.
Although the Blues wanted to sell the former Manchester United star to Saudi Arabia, the Giallorossi worked hard to strike a deal with the Premier League giants.
Jose Mourinho played a big part in convincing Lukaku to move to the Italian capital as he did with Paulo Dybala last year.
Christian Pulisic – AC Milan
AC Milan were one of the busiest clubs in the summer window, signing and selling players in equal numbers.
The overhaul also marked the start of a new era under the American owners RedBird Capital.
Among the array of new arrivals was United States superstar Christian Pulisic.
Pulisic had been on the radar of the Rossoneri for a long time and also came close to signing for the Italians on one occasion in the past.
Milan managed to strike an agreement with Blues for Pulisic for around €22 million, while the player’s desire to move to San Siro also helped the deal to come to fruition.
Despite coming off a lacklustre spell at Stamford Bridge, the 24-year-old has breathed a new life into his career with Milan, hitting the ground running.
He has scored twice in Serie A, including a belter of a goal against Bologna on his competitive debut.
Jesper Lindstrom – Napoli
Napoli faced a big task of retaining some of the star names in the summer who were instrumental in the Serie A triumph last season.
Although they did manage to keep hold of Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Min-jae joined Bayern Munich, and Scudetto-winning manager Luciano Spalletti quit his role.
In return, the Partenopei brought in a handful of new faces, including Jesper Lindstrom from Eintracht Frankfurt in a deal worth €20 million.
The Danish prospect was signed as a replacement for Hirving Lozano, who completed his move to his former club PSV Eindhoven.
Lindstrom had several top European clubs behind his trail, but the Serie A champions persuaded him to the Diego Maradona Stadium.
Viewed as one of the promising talents in Europe, expectations are huge for Lindstrom on how he will fare in his new venture.
Gianluca Scamacca – Atalanta
Atalanta emerged out of nowhere and moved ahead of Inter Milan and AS Roma in the race to sign Gianluca Scamacca from West Ham United in a deal worth more than €30 million.
The Italian centre-forward was desperate to leave the Hammers after just one season after enduring a difficult time in the Premier League.
La Dea chose the former Sassuolo man as the new face of the attack after trading Rasmus Hojlund to Manchester United for a lucrative deal.
Scamacca has already started repaying the faith, getting off to a thunderous start to the new season, scoring two goals in three Serie A games.
Nikola Krstovic – Lecce
One of the odd names on the list, Nikola Krstovic is one of the overlooked low-profile transfers this summer.
Lecce are turning out to be one of the surprise packages in Serie A this season, currently sitting fourth in the table with two victories in three games, including a shock win over Lazio.
Krstovic has been at the heart of Lecce’s impressive run, scoring against Fiorentina and Salernitana.
Arriving from Slovakian club Dunajska Streda for around €5m, the Montenegrin striker is proving to be the real deal and can even reach higher levels if he continues his current run of form.
Daichi Kamada – Lazio
Daichi Kamada’s search for a new club since parting ways with Eintracht Frankfurt prolonged for months after coming closer towards several clubs but to no avail.
Lazio pounced on the opportunity and lured him to the Italian capital as they were on the lookout for a replacement for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
The Japanese midfielder produced a fantastic performance in the win over defending champions Napoli over the weekend, which included a stunning goal.
Jesper Karlsson – Bologna
Bologna invested in a plethora of promising young talents this summer, and one of the notable names among them was Jesper Karlsson.
The Swedish forward attracted interest from several Serie A clubs following his productive stint at AZ Alkmaar, but Rossoblu eventually signed him for around €11 million.
Yann Sommer – Inter Milan
Andre Onana’s departure to Manchester United may have been a big blow for Inter Milan, but they were well-prepared for it after identifying Yann Sommer as his replacement.
The Nerazzurri paid Bayern Munich around €6m for the services of the Switzerland international.
Although he is a step down from Onana in terms of ball-playing abilities, Sommer is phenomenal when it comes to shot-stopping.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – AC Milan
Ruben Loftus-Cheek was one of the first transfers of Milan in the summer, with the English midfielder securing his move from Milan to Stamford Bridge in a deal worth £15m.
There were doubts about Loftus-Cheek’s potential because of his underwhelming spell with the Blues, but he has quashed them after making a stunning start to life in Italy.
The 27-year-old was one of the standout performers in Milan’s victory over Roma, and he looks to be on a mission to rejuvenate his career.
