Europa League champions Atalanta have confirmed the signing of highly-rated left-footed defender Honest Ovonranwen Ahanor from Serie A side Genoa.
The 17-year-old becomes Atalanta’s third addition of the summer transfer window, following the arrivals of Odilon Kossounou from Bayer Leverkusen and Kamaldeen Sulemana from Southampton.
Ahanor made headlines last season by becoming the first player born in 2008 to feature in a Serie A match. He made his full debut for Genoa against Juventus on September 28, aged just 16 years and 218 days. Over the course of the 2023–24 campaign, the young defender made six Serie A appearances, starting in three and notched his first goal contribution in a 2-2 draw against Napoli at the Diego Maradona Stadium in May.
Atalanta also revealed that Ahanor is eligible to represent Nigeria through his parents, stating on their official website:
“Born on February 23, 2008 in Aversa to Nigerian parents, Honest joined Genoa’s youth sector when he was still a child.”
Despite not having represented Italy at any youth level, Ahanor remains eligible to play for Nigeria without the need for a change in international allegiance. He qualifies for selection at various youth levels for the Super Eagles, including the Golden Eaglets (U17), Flying Eagles (U20), and the Olympic Eagles (U23).
Atalanta’s newest signing now joins up with fellow Nigerian international Ademola Lookman at the Bergamo-based club, although Lookman has been the subject of transfer speculation and may leave before the summer window closes.
Credit Ifeanyi Emmanuel
