#3 Alessandro del Piero
Undoubtedly the best young player ever bought by Juventus, del Piero’s arrival at the club revitalised their squad of title-winning players like Michael Laudrup and Michel Platini. In his very first full start, he scored a hat-trick against Parma and allayed the fears of doubters.
Although he spent most of his first season on the bench, he got his opportunity mid-way through his second season as Baggio got injured in November. This paved the way for him to start in his favoured no. 10 role. By the end of the season, del Piero had 11 goals in 50 appearances and led Juve as their best attacking player to a league-and-Cup double. The legend of the ‘Del-Piero zone’ began with this season, as his trademark move was to cut in from the left wing and curl a shot into the far corner past the goalkeeper.
He continued in the same vein for the rest of his illustrious Juve career, netting a total of 290 goals over 19 illustrious seasons for the club, including one season in Serie B, when he was approached by a number of top European clubs but refused to move. He has built an unmatched legacy for himself, and his loyalty, quality and gentlemanly approach won him admirers from all quarters.
During his time with the Turin club, he won 8 Serie A, a Coppa Italia and a Champions League title to go along with his extremely impressive goalscoring record. del Piero cemented his place in football history as an all-time great, and Juve’s transfer market astuteness deserves some credit for this.
