As one of the biggest football countries in the world, it is not difficult to find great Italian strikers from time to time. Those forwards have huge contributions in presenting various titles and prestigious trophies for Italian national team. Not only for the national team, they also won many achievements for their respective clubs.
In this article, I would like to present information about fifteen greatest Italian strikers of all time. Besides having incredible goal-scoring records, the players in this list also created various memorable moments in the history of football.
15. Salvatore Schillaci
Schillaci's career as a striker at club level was actually mediocre, in fact we could even say that he failed to show his best performance. The only thing that makes Schillaci was listed in this article is his great performance in the World Cup 1990, where he became the top scorer of the tournament and helped Italy national team win the third place. After briefly playing for Juventus, this striker moved to Inter Milan and failed to impress the fans, mainly because of his prolonged injury. He ended his career as a professional footballer with a Japanese club, Jubilo Iwata, in 1997.
14. Roberto Pruzzo
Before the emergence of the figure of Francesco Totti, Pruzzo was the most respected player in the history of AS Roma. This player was signed from Genoa in 1978 and played for ten years for AS Roma. In that period, Pruzzo successfully presented one Serie A title and four Coppa Italia trophies. Not only that, he also became a four-times Serie A top scorer. Pruzzo is the only striker who scored five goals in a single Serie A match. Although he showed great performance at club level, Pruzzo only played six times for Italian national team.
13. Roberto Bettega
This player earned the nickname "The White Feather" because of his trademark grey hair at his later stage of his career. Bettega is one of the best strikers ever to play for Juventus. He played for 14 years, from 1969 to 1983. During his greatest period, Bettega is known as a very dangerous striker. He has good heading ability, good technique, and both of his legs are equally strong. In total, Bettega scored 129 goals from 326 appearances.
12. Giuseppe Signori
Signori is an example of a great Italian striker who has never won a Serie A title throughout his football career. Although he became three-time Serie A top scorer, this player couldn't win any major trophy. This is because Signori only played for mediocre teams (at that moment) such Lazio, Sampdoria and Bologna. Nevertheless, his individual skill cannot be doubted. With a record of 188 goals in 344 appearances, Signori is named as one of the most prolific strikers in Serie A.
11. Christian Vieri
Christian Vieri is an ideal type of target man striker. He was very strong in the box and are very effective in converting chances into goals. Not only had successful career in his country, Vieri also able to show good performance when he played for Atletico Madrid in the Spanish league. In that club, he became the league's top scorer. Throughout his career, Vieri scored 194 goals in 374 appearances. He played for most of the biggest clubs in Serie A, such as Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Lazio.
10. Antonio Di Natale
Di Natale is a type of striker who showed his best performance at a fairly old age. Have been playing for Udinese since 2004, this player twice in a row became the top scorer of Serie A in 2010 and 2011, when he was 34 years old. Di Natale proves his loyalty by staying at Udinese although there are many big clubs who wanted to sign him. His loyalty is incredible, considering the fact that Di Natale has never won a single trophy as Udinese player.
9. Luigi Riva
Luigi Riva is a former attacker who created wonders. He led a small team, Cagliari, become a champion of Serie A in the 1969-1970 season. Not only that, he also became the top scorer of the competition. With Italy, Riva also achieved prestigious achievements, in which he won Euro 1968 trophy with the Azzurri. Until now, Riva still holds the record as Italian national team's top scorer of all time, with a total of 35 goals.
8. Roberto Baggio
Baggio is known as one of the best second strikers in the world. This player demonstrated various magical techniques on the field during his best days. His individual performances are always great, no matter in which club he played. The best period of his career occurred in the mid-90s, where Baggio was able to win two Serie A titles and took Italian national team to be a World Cup 1994 runner-up. Throughout his career, Baggio played in 488 matches and scored 221 goals.
7. Filippo Inzaghi
Filippo Inzaghi was a very smart striker who could convert the slightest opportunity into a goal. He is known for his ability to escape from the opponent's defenders offside trap. Inzaghi is also very smart in finding for an empty space. He is very effective, although his physical attributes might not be as strong as other Italian strikers. In Juventus and AC Milan, Inzaghi also won many titles, among them are three Serie A titles and two Champions League trophies.
6. Paolo Rossi
Paolo Rossi was the most praised player by Italian people when Italy won the World Cup 1982. This is not a surprising fact, considering that Rossi had a huge role in bringing the victory to his country at the tournament. He became top scorer as well as selected as the best player in the World Cup 1982. At club level, Rossi experienced a period of glory while playing for Juventus in the mid 1980s, where he won two Serie A championship titles
5. Giampiero Boniperti
Speaking about loyalty and good quality as a striker, Boniperti is a player who has both of these variables. He spent his entire career as a professional footballer for Juventus. Playing from 1946 to 1961, Boniperti scored 178 goals in 444 matches. He won five Serie A titles and two Coppa Italia trophies for La Vecchia Signora. At that time, with John Charles and Omar Sivori, Boniperti formed a trident attack formation, known by the nickname "the Magical Trio."
4. Francesco Totti
Totti is not only the greatest goalscorer of AS Roma. He is the "Prince of Rome," a player who is highly respected for his contributions and loyalty towards AS Roma. The fact that Totti only presented one Serie A title throughout his career didn't diminish the respect from the football fans. His loyalty and goals will always be recorded in the history of football. Totti has captained Roma since 1998, and until now his position in the team is irreplaceable.
3. Giuseppe Meazza
Meazza is regarded as one of the best Italian strikers, especially for his role in bringing Italian national team won two consecutive World Cups, in 1934 and 1938. Many people even say that Meazza's individual skills is far better than Pele and Diego Maradona. This player spent 14 years of his career for Inter Milan and won three Serie A titles. In 1980, his name was officially used as the name of the homebase stadium of Inter and AC Milan.
2. Alessandro Del Piero
It is a sad fact to realize that Del Piero should end his career outside Italy. He had a glorious 21-year career in the Italian League filled with great goals and unforgettable moments. He won eight Serie A titles and one Champions League trophy for Juventus. Del Piero's most memorable moment as a player probably is during the time when Juventus was relegated to Serie B in the 2006-2007 season. At the time, most players left Juventus. Del Piero decided to stay with the club, took Juventus through its tough times, then finally reclaim its glory in Serie A.
1. Silvio Piola
Silvio Piola is the Serie A top scorer of all time, with a record 274 goals in 537 appearances. Piola also played a major role bringing the Italian national team won the 1938 World Cup, where he scored two goals in the final. Piola's golden age happened when he played for Lazio from 1934 to 1943. At the club, Piola became top scorer of Serie A twice. He is also the only Italian player who becomes all-time top scorers for three different clubs: Lazio, Novara, and Vercelli.
However, Piola had never won even a single Serie A title during his career. He ended his professional career at Novara in 1954. To commemorate his contribution in the world of football, Silvio Piola's name later was used as the stadium name of two different clubs, Novara and Vercelli.
