5 of the best transfer bargains in the history of modern football

#3 Andre Pirlo to Juventus

Juventus went on to win four consecutive four Serie A titles with Pirlo

When Andrea Pirlo hit the age of 32, AC Milan decided that after 12 years of service, the player was no longer required and could hinder the introduction of young talent.

At the same time, Juventus had just handed Antonio Conte the managerial seat in 2011, and the Italian manager was quick to sign the legendary midfielder for free.

On March 2018, he disclosed why he felt like a move away from Milan was the right decision. "After a delicate moment, I arrived in a team that was serious and ambitious. They wanted to win and we did so. After 10 years at Milan, I needed new motivations and Juve gave me this...".

Pirlo turned out to be invaluable to the ambitious Italian manager. Completely written off by his former club, Pirlo found himself right at home, sitting in the middle of Conte's 3-5-2 formation as a deep-lying playmaker.

His ability to dictate tempo is unparalleled in European football and his composure on and off the ball helped the side progress up the pitch.

In total, he scored 19 goals in 164 appearances. 15 out of those were free-kicks, an ability he has been idolized for.

What followed was nothing short of catastrophic for Milan, as Juventus went on to win four successive Serie A titles with him to stomp their authority on domestic Italian football.

Pirlo's standout performances were lauded on the world stage and after five very successful years at the club, he moved to New York to play in the MLS.