Top 5 oldest Serie A clubs by average age

There is a preconceived idea in modern football that when you hit 30 years old you are too old or past your best.

Serie A has more than 50 players over the age of 30.

On the other hand, the Premier League currently has only 12 players above the age of 35, five of which are goalkeepers. In fact, Italy is somewhat of a specialist when it comes to older players.

Why Italy have such older, more valuable players is quite debatable. It could be argued that the pace of the game in Italy is slightly slower compared to the other four leagues of Europe. For example, look at players such as Edin Dzeko and Aleksandar Kolarov. Both played in the Premier League, considered one of the fastest paced leagues. They have both now ended up at Roma in their twilight years of their playing careers.

You could also argue that Italian clubs tend to sign players of age that have experienced the fast-paced leagues in Europe and have acquired vast tactical and technical knowledge. This brilliant blend of experience and tactical knowledge is exactly what Serie A clubs look for and at discount prices.

The move of Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus in 2018 from Real Madrid is probably the highest profile of an ageing player moving to a big club. Two years older than Ronaldo is the 36-year-old Fabio Quagliarelli, the last season’s Serie A top scorer.

Let’s take a look at the Top 5 oldest Serie A clubs by average age.

5. Cagliari

Making the headlines with their fans accused of racially abusing Inter Milan’s Lukaku, Cagliari is located at the top of Serie A’s list of average ages. In spite of trying to regenerate the squad this summer by taking in Nandez from Boca Juniors, Alberto Cerri, Christian Oliva, Giovanni Simeone and Marko Rog, they still remain on the fifth position of this list.

Their current average age lies at 28 years, 206 days.

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4. Bologna

Bologna has enough problems as it is with their boss Sinisa Mihajlovic going through some tough period in his life, battling with illness. The Rossoblu have failed to strengthen their squad with younger players, adding only 19-year-old Andreas Skov Olsen to their ranks. their oldest squad member is former Napoli midfielder Blerim Dzemaili, followed by new arrival, well-known to the Serie A, Gary Medel.

Their current average age is also at 28 years, 206 days.

3. Lecce

The Serie A newcomers had high hopes for the summer transfer window and promised mountains, but in the end failed to lure any top names, so the squad remained almost the same age. The biggest names to arrive were former AC Milan goalkeeper Gabriel and Gianelli Imbula from Stoke City. However, the arrival of 34-year-old Luca Tossettini didn’t help at all.

Their average age is 29 years, 55 days.

2. SPAL

SPAL, who finieshed 13th last season, brought in few new faces in August. Their age smoothed just a bit the average age, but that was not enough. Andrea Petagna joined on a permamnent deal, after spending the season on loan from Atalanta. Alessandro Murgia, Igor, Mohamed Fares and Mattia Valoti have joined in, but the squad stays one position above the oldest team in Italy.

Their average age is 29 years, 136 days.

1. Juventus

They maybe rule the Italian Serie A league, but unexpectedly their squad is the oldest in the entire league. The arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo in summer 2018 didn’t help the team in any way, except for winning the Scudetto, which they already had won 7 consecutive times before his arrival.

If 19-year-old but experienced defender Mattijs de Ligt had not joined, the Italian champions would have been stuck at the list with more than 31 years of average age. They ruined all the hope of squad regeneration, by bringing back their former captain Gianluigi Buffon in attempt for him to beat Paolo Maldini’s record of most league appearances.

Their average age is 29 years, 219 days.