Serie A: An in-depth look at the top five goalscorers

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Juventus celebrate their 35th Serie A title in 2018/19
Juventus celebrate their 35th Serie A title in 2018/19

# 5: Antonio Di Natale (209 goals)

Antonio Di Natale
Antonio Di Natale

Antonio Di Natale scored 18 goals for Empoli (2002 - 2004) and 191 goals for Udinese (2004 - 2016) for a total of 209 Serie A goals - a tally which places him in fifth spot in the list of all-time Serie A goal scorers.

The diminutive Italian twice won the Capocannonieri, awarded for most goals in a Serie A season, in successive seasons for Udinese (2009-10 and 2010-11).

Naturally right-footed, Di Natale was adept at scoring off either foot and played either as a lone striker, wide on the left flank as part of an attacking trident, or in a deeper role due to his ability to score goals as well as create scoring opportunities for team-mates.

Di Natale was a regular penalty taker for Udinese, scoring 33 Serie A goals from the penalty spot for the club from Udine.


#T4 Giuseppe Meazza (216 goals)

Giuseppe Meazza
Giuseppe Meazza

Widely regarded as one of the best Italian players of his time and Italy's greatest ever, Giuseppe Meazza scored 216 Serie A goals for AC Milan, Internazionale, and Juventus across 14 seasons in the thirties and forties.

Once rejected by Milan due to his small physique, Meazza scored the bulk of his Serie A goals (198) for Internazionale.

He won three Serie A titles, including the inaugural season in 1929-30, for Inter and won the Capocannonieri (for most Serie A goals in a season) on three occasions (all for Inter).

Initially playing as a fullback in his youth, Meazza started his professional career as a centre-forward and went on to demonstrate his versatility by playing effectively on the left flank as well in central and attacking midfield roles. The diminutive Meazza (5' 6") would bamboozle defenders and goalkeepers with his trickery and wizardry in an era when two-footed tackles did not attract a straight red card.

Meazza was the youngest player (23 years) to score 100 Serie A goals, beating his teammate Silvio Piola to the mark by 36 days. Meazza's 17 Serie A hat-tricks is a league record shared only by Gunnar Nordahl.

The San Siro stadium, shared by AC Milan and Internationale, is named in his honour as the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.


#T4: José Altafini (216 goals)

José Altafini
José Altafini

José Altafini's 216 goals in 17 seasons for Milan, Napoli and Juventus from the late fifties to the early seventies, places the Brazilian-born player tied fourth with Giuseppe Meazza for most goals in the Serie A.

He is the fifth youngest player to score 100 goals in the Italian top flight and played for Brazil at the 1958 World Cup and for Italy at the 1962 World Cup.

Altafini won two Serie A titles for Milan and was the Serie A top scorer for Milan in the 1961-62 season.

Starting out as an attacking midfielder, Altafini made a seamless transition to a centre-forward due to his ability on the ball and the creativity to lookout for teammates in better positions.

After Javier Zanetti, Altafini has the most Serie A appearances (459) for a non-Italian born player.

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