Top 50 foreigners of all time in Italian Football - Part 5
17 George Weah (Liberia)
The robust Liberian centre forward has the honour of being the first non-European to win the Ballon d’Or. George Weah achieved this feat remarkably after leaving Paris St Germain for A.C Milan in 5 months. The Liberian was not a prolific goalscorer but during
his time at San Siro, Weah contributed to the Milan clubs’ two title successes in 1996 and in 1999. No one can forget the wonder goal scored by George Weah against Chievo Verona in September 1996. Taking possession of the ball in his own box, the Liberian
incredibly skipped past 7 Verona players in a 90 yard run towards the goal before slotting the ball home. The goal was later included in Pele’s list of 100 all time greatest goals.
16 Zico (Brazil)
Zico is widely acknowledged as one of Brazil’s greatest and perhaps the best South American player of his time. It was a major transfer coup when Udinese signed the talented Brazilian from Flamengo in 1983. Zico lived up to his reputation in his first season
and scored 19 goals in only 24 games- one shy of top scorer of that season, Michel Platini. Sadly, the Brazilian had an injury hit campaign in the 1984-85 season, forcing him to leave the club.
15 Javier Zanetti (Argentina)
It seems that the Argentinean player is not yet done with football and is still racking up appearances for Inter Milan even after surpassing the 500 mark of appearances for Inter Milan. When Massimo Moratti first took reigns of Inter, Zanetti was his first
signing and the Argentinean served his purpose for the Milan outfit in various defensive and midfield position. The animated Argentinean is the heart and soul of his team and even though he is ageing, Zanetti leads his side by example. A great footballer and
a great man, Javier Zanetti, when he eventually retires, will be ranked right beside the legendary Giacinto Facchetti.
14 Manuel Rui Costa (Portugal)
The Portuguese international cried when he found out that Fiorentina had decided to sell him to A.C Milan. Rui Costa was a hero in Florence because of his smooth skills and great vision. Under Claudio Ranieri, Rui Costa progressed from an often substituted
player to a title contender under Giovanni Trapattoni. He was sold t A.C Milan because of financial reason and he shone at Milan aswell before the emergence of Kaka. Manuel Rui Costa spent 12 years in Italy and is still admired and loved by fans in Florence
and Milan.
13 Frank Rijkaard (Holland)
Arrigo Sacchi specifically requested Milan to sign the Dutchman who joined his fellow countrymen Ruud Gullit and Marco Van Basten. The versatile midfielder went on to spend 5 years at Milan. The 2 time Scudetto winner came 3rd for the 1989 Golden
Ball award.
12 Andriy Shevchenko (Ukraine)
The Ukraine international won the Capocannoniere crown in his first season at Milan after moving from Dynamo Kiev after a great and memorable European campaign with the Ukrainian club a feat that was previously only achieved by the legendary Michel Platini.
During his time at Milan, Shevchenko became one of the greatest strikers on the planet and collected the Golden Ball, won the Scudetto and the Champions League in 2003. His performances later on earned him a move to England at Chelsea where he never really
settled down and was not able to produce the same performances that made him a legend at A.C Milan. The striker returned to Milan but it seemed as if the glory days were gone but the Ukrainian hitman is still considered a legend at San Siro and his bad patch
in England will never tarnish the greatness he achieved in Italy.
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