Nicolo Zaniolo has joined Atalanta on a season-long loan from Galatasaray.
The deal for Zaniolo includes an obligation to make the transfer permanent “under certain conditions” and sees the 25-year-old return to Serie A after an 18-month absence.
Zaniolo spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Aston Villa, making 39 appearances in all competitions and scoring three goals. The Villa loan deal included an option to buy, but The Athletic reported in January it was unlikely the move would be made permanent.
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The attacking midfielder began his senior career with Serie B side Virtus Entella, breaking into the first team in 2016, before moving to Inter Milan in 2017. He joined Roma the following season, where he stayed for four and a half years, earning his senior Italy debut in 2019 and winning the Europa Conference League in 2022.
Bentornato in Italia, benvenuto a Bergamo Nicolò 👋
Welcome back to Italy, welcome to Bergamo Nicolò 🖤💙#Zaniolo | #GoAtalantaGo ⚫️🔵 pic.twitter.com/j84VM0Wgdf
— Atalanta B.C. (@Atalanta_BC) July 5, 2024
He signed for Galatasaray in February in a €15million deal before moving to Villa the following summer.
Zaniolo missed the final match of the Premier League season through injury, which subsequently ruled him out of the European Championship. The Italy international had featured four times in Euro 2024 qualifying and has been capped 19 times at senior level.
Atalanta finished fourth in Serie A last season to qualify for the Champions League. They also concluded the campaign with silverware after ending Bayer Leverkusen’s 51-game unbeaten run with a 3-0 victory in the Europa League final.
(Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)
