Official: world’s priciest 2008-born footballer heads to Italy - Ahanor sets his sights on Atalanta

From 4 July the most expensive player born in 2008 will ply his trade in Serie A. Atalanta have paid €16.4 million plus bonuses to prise Honest Ahanor away from Genoa, eclipsing the fee Chelsea will eventually lay out,regulation permitting, for Brazil’s Denner in 2026. One campaign with the senior Griffone was enough to convince La Dea to make a sizeable punt on the left-sided starlet.

Rapid rise from Aversa to the top flight

Born in Aversa on 23 February 2008 to Nigerian parents, Ahanor joined Genoa in 2013 and raced through every youth level before Alberto Gilardino handed him a senior debut against Juventus on 28 September 2024. Still only 16, the record set by Francesco Camarda remains intact, he made six Serie A appearances despite a muscle injury that sidelined him until April. Patrick Vieira restored him to the XI and only an own goal credited to Alex Meret denied the youngster a maiden strike in the run-in.

Those top-flight outings came alongside 14 matches (two goals) for the Under-17s and 10 Primavera 1 games (two goals),a reminder of just how green he remains.

What Atalanta are getting

Ahanor is a physically imposing left-back with a sound defensive toolkit: strong in one-v-one duels, sharp at winning the ball back and blessed with decent reading of the play. The next steps are clear, sharpen his progressive passing, add consistency in the final third and adapt to the higher tempo inside the opposition half.

Atalanta believe regular minutes under new head coach Ivan Jurić, appointed to usher in the post-Gasperini era, can unlock that ceiling. For now, one thing is certain: the world’s costliest 2008-born talent has arrived in Bergamo, and La Dea are banking on him conquering the left flank for years to come