What do Jimmy Greaves, Ray Wilkins, David Beckham, Paul Gascoigne and Kyle Walker have in common? They all made more than 50 appearances for England as well as playing for Italian clubs. While they are household names, the first Englishman to represent an Italian club is less familiar.
Former soldier Charles Adcock moved to Padova just after the second world war having been spotted playing for the British army. By a strange quirk of fate Adcock never played league football in his own country. After spending a handful of years in Italy, he returned to England in 1953 where he played for non-league Peterborough United.
In the 80 years after Adcock’s move, more than 50 English players have played in Serie A. There are more English players with Italian clubs this season than ever before. Of the 21 British players with Italian clubs, the majority are English, led by internationals such as John Stones and Djed Spence who moved to Inter after the World Cup. So, why the sudden influx of players from England?
There was a wave of high-profile English players in Serie A in the 1980s, such as the first £1m player, Trevor Francis, who joined Sampdoria in 1982. He came up against Mark Hateley and Wilkins, who both spent three seasons at Milan in the mid-1980s.
Gascoigne was the big English star in Italy in the 1990s and he was joined by journeymen such as Franz Carr and Danny Dichio. At any time throughout those two decades, only a handful of Englishmen played in Serie A compared to the 15 who are now with Italian clubs.
The fortunes of those English émigrés were followed by fans back home on Gazzetta Football Italia, hosted by James Richardson. Nowadays, the main coverage of Serie A is on TNT, headed up by commentator Adam Summerton.
“It’s multifaceted,” says Summerton of the British invasion. “It starts with the trailblazers. Someone like Liam Henderson, who’s been in Italy since 2018. Chris Smalling was another in 2019.” Smalling spent five years at Roma and was the player of the match when they won the inaugural Conference League final in 2022 under José Mourinho.
“Italian sporting directors have said how they really value the hard work, professionalism and tenacity of Scottish players in particular,” Summerton says. “They have also developed a reputation for being good in the dressing room – that’s really appealing when you’re building a team.”
Summerton also believes attitudes have changed to British players. The new intake are more rounded characters who actively enjoy the different culture. “The world has become a smaller place, and the modern player seems more likely to see opportunity rather than difficulty in the challenges that come with playing abroad. Players often talk about becoming more mature and more rounded for the experience, both as people and players,” Summerton says.
“Many are aiming to embrace culture, language and even food. Scott McTominay’s appreciation of Neapolitan tomatoes has become well-known. The majority are having good experiences, that will naturally lead to others wanting to try it too.”
Scottish players have improved the perception of British football in Italy. Lewis Ferguson, who moved to Bologna in 2022, was voted Serie A midfielder of the season in 2023-24 and was the club’s captain when they beat Milan in the Coppa Italia final last year. Following on from Ferguson’s success, McTominay joined Napoli and won the Serie A player of the season award as the club won the league title.
Another factor is that the players appreciate the rich traditions of Italian football. “Fikayo Tomori has talked about looking at the Milan badge on his tracksuit every day and taking such pride playing for the great Milan,” Summerton says. Tomori also made a concerted effort to learn the language and was soon conducting interviews in Italian after joining the club in 2020. This runs against the notion that British players are reluctant to assimilate.
Furthermore, coaching at Premier League academies has advanced to the extent that they are producing technically adept players who suit Serie A. One example is Omari Hutchinson, who was part of Chelsea’s academy and has just moved to Milan on loan from Nottingham Forest.
Hutchinson’s move also points to the more prosaic issue of the economic imbalance between the Premier League and its European counterparts. “Good players who might be on the fringes of a Premier League side see Italy as a chance to be a more important player in a big league with a big-name club,” Summerton says.
The English invasion is best summed up by Inter, who signed Curtis Jones from Liverpool this summer to join Spence and Stones. Prior to their arrival, the club had only signed three English players in their history: Gerry Hitchens in 1961, Paul Ince in 1995 and Ashley Young in 2020. Stones swapped Manchester for Milan in the summer and his delight at joining such a football institution as Inter was clear. “I have so many emotions. I’m really happy, proud and excited. I couldn’t imagine a better place to do it.”
Who does Summerton think will make the best impression this season? “The early signs from Jones are good,” he says. “He’s a profile of player that Cristian Chivu, the Inter coach, really wanted.” His performance for Liverpool against Inter in the Champions League last season sowed the seed.
“I’m also really excited for Trevoh Chalobah,” says Summerton. “He’s walked into one of the most exciting projects in world football right now at Como. Cesc Fàbregas is doing tremendous work there. He has started the season really well and they are already strong defensively.”
Chalobah knows what to expect from Fàbregas, having trained together at Chelsea. “I remember how demanding he was with the younger players,” says the centre-back. “I know him really well.” Working with a legend of the game at an ambitious club is appealing for Chalobah. And, as Summerton points out: “He gets to live next to Lake Como and play Champions League football too. There’s a lot to like.”
Leave a Reply