Football Italia
·15 Mei 2025
Most impressive Sartori deals: From Calafiori and Koopmeiners to Castro and Ndoye

Football Italia
·15 Mei 2025
Bologna are busy celebrating their first major title in 51 years after beating Milan 1-0 in the Coppa Italia final on Wednesday night, and while Vincenzo Italiano and his players receive their deserved plaudits, credit must also go to director Giovanni Sartori, who has been responsible for a long list of impressive signings and sales with Bologna and Atalanta.
From Alessandro Bastoni and Amad Diallo to Riccardo Calafiori and Joshua Zirkzee, here is a look at some of Sartori’s finest pieces of business to date.
According to reports from Sky Sport Italia, the current batch of Bologna players are now worth well over twice as much as what it cost to assemble the squad.
Of the 16 players who took to the pitch during Wednesday’s Coppa Italia final, it cost around €106m to sign them, and it is reported that they are now worth a combined sum of €231m.
Below is what it cost to buy the current Bologna players, along with their current market valuations.
ROME, ITALY – MAY 14: Lewis Ferguson, Lorenzo De Silvestri and Riccardo Orsolini of Bologna lift the Coppa Italia trophy as their team mates celebrate after the team’s victory in the Coppa Italia Final match between AC Milan and Bologna at Stadio Olimpico on May 14, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images)
Lukasz Skorupski: Signed for €9m, estimated value €2.5m
Emil Holm: Signed for €7.7m, estimated value €8m
Sam Beukema: Signed for €7.98m, estimated value €25m
Jhon Lucumi: Signed for €8m, estimated value €18m
Juan Miranda: Signed for free, estimated value €11m
Remo Freuler: Signed for €1,9m, estimated value €6.5m
Lewis Ferguson: Signed for €2m, estimated value €24m
Giovanni Fabbian: Signed for €5.37m, estimated value €13m
Riccardo Orsolini: Signed for €15m, estimated value €15m
Santiago Castro: Signed for €13.2m, estimated value €35m
Dan Ndoye: Signed for €10.15m, estimated value €25m
Tommaso Pobega: Signed on loan, estimated value €10m
Nico Casale: Loan with option to buy for €6.5m, estimated value €7m
Davide Calabria: Signed on loan, estimated value €7.5m
Jens Odgaard: Signed for €4.28m, estimated value €12m
Thijs Dallinga: Signed for €15m, estimated value €12m
EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS – MARCH 04: Riccardo Calafiori of Arsenal celebrates scoring his team’s seventh goal during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Round of 16 first leg match between PSV and Arsenal FC at PSV Stadion on March 04, 2025 in Eindhoven, Netherlands. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Sartori also made a pair of impressive deals in the summer, raking in over €35m in pure profit through the sales of Riccardo Calafiori and Joshua Zirkzee to Arsenal and Manchester United respectively.
Below are Sartori’s most notable sales from his time with Bologna.
Riccardo Calafiori to Arsenal: Bought for €24.5m, sold for €45m
Joshua Zirkzee to Manchester United: Bought for €27.5m, sold for €42.5m
Arthur Theate to Rennes: Sold for €19m*
Aaron Hickey to Brentford: Sold for €14.25m*
Jerdy Schouten to PSV: Sold for €12.35m*
*Players were not originally signed by Sartori
Teun Koopmeiners of Juventus after the Serie A match between Lecce and Juventus at Stadio Via del Mare on December 01, 2024 in Lecce, Italy. (Photo by Maurizio Lagana/Getty Images)
Prior to his appointment at Bologna in 2022, Sartori also had an impressive list of dealings from his tenure with Atalanta, including enormous profits on the likes of Cristian Romero, Alessandro Bastoni, Frank Kessie, Amad Diallo and Teun Koopmeiners.
Below are a collection of some of Sartori’s best bits of business from his Atalanta days.
Frank Kessie: Signed for €1.5m, sold for €32m
Remo Freuler: Signed for €3.45m, sold for €8.3m
Gianluca Mancini: Signed for €1.9m, sold for €24m
Timothy Castange: Signed for €6.5m, sold for €20.9m
Robin Gosens: Signed for €1.17m, sold for €27.4m
Bryan Cristante: Signed for €9.5m, sold for €30.6m
Cristian Romero: Signed for €17m, sold for €52m
Teun Koopmeiners: Signed for €14m, sold for €58.4m
Alessandro Bastoni: Youth academy, sold for €31.1m
Amad Diallo: Youth academy, sold for €21.3m