What started as a pleasant novelty for Scottish calcio fans has developed into an unofficial trade agreement.

This month, Lennon Miller sealed a move from Motherwell to Udinese to become the latest Scot to sign for a Serie A side. They just keep coming.

Liam Henderson, who departed relegated Empoli to join Sampdoria this summer, kick-started the trend back in 2018 when his Bel Paese-trotting adventure began in the second tier with Bari. 

But the momentum really started building after Aaron Hickey’s successful spell at Bologna from 2020 to 2022.

Since then, no fewer than seven Scottish players have signed for Italian clubs: Josh Doig (Verona and Sassuolo), Lewis Ferguson (Bologna), Jack Hendry (Cremonese, on loan), Che Adams (Torino), Scott McTominay, Billy Gilmour (both Napoli) and now Miller.

Those numbers don’t exactly equate to an invasion, but context is key here. Until Henderson’s arrival, there had been only three Scottish players in Serie A history and the last was Graeme Souness in the mid-1980s.

So why are Italian clubs now turning to Scottish players every summer? The time has come to dive deep into what is behind this trend.

The Known Quantities

When investigating the newfound Italian interest in Scottish players, it’s worth drawing a line through those who have arrived so far.

There have been two distinctly different types of Scottish footballer to arrive on the peninsula in recent years: youngsters plucked directly from the Scottish domestic game and players who are already established performers at the top level. 

McTominay, Gilmour and Adams fall into the latter category. The trio were experienced pros and Scotland regulars who had racked up a combined 383 Premier League appearances by the time they arrived in Italy.

If anything, Napoli and Torino’s decisions to invest in them last summer followed a separate trend – that of Italian clubs looking to pick up Premier League players with a point to prove, seeking game time or wanting a fresh challenge.  

Tammy Abraham, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fikayo Tomori are comparable examples in terms of their age and profile when swapping the English top-flight for Serie A, while Juventus defender Lloyd Kelly is a more recent addition.

This Scottish trio could still help to smooth the path from Scotland to Italy though, thanks to their role in changing the ‘Braveheart’ image that persists in Italy – that of Scots being blood-and-thunder, hard-hitting players who relish physical battles but can be found wanting technically.

McTominay quashed that notion with a spectacular debut season, winning the league MVP award after his stunning overhead kick on the final day against Cagliari – his 12th goal of the season – helped seal the club’s fourth Scudetto.

Adams’ 10-goal tally in his debut season was an admirable haul that made him Toro’s top scorer by a distance, while Antonio Conte lavished praise on Gilmour’s technique and vision after the playmaker made an impact for Napoli in the second half of the season.

“He’s a fantastic player: he takes the ball under pressure, looks before receiving the ball, always knows where the ball is going. A big, big personality,” Conte said in March. “I love him.”

The more Scots who come to Serie A, the more confidence that Scottish players seemingly have about following suit, too.

There are success stories to draw on and friendly faces to chat with about any doubts before and after making the move, as Adams has explained.

“Before arriving in Turin, I spoke to Lewis to understand what life is like in Italy and what the league is like,” said the former Southampton striker.

“I also spoke about it with the others, for example with Scott and Billy, comparing notes on life off the pitch.”

The Kids are Alright

Then there are the players who, like Miller, were plucked directly from Scottish Premiership.

Italian sides have shown a tendency to use the Scottish market as a source of technical excellence rather than physical grunt here too.

While Henderson is a tireless runner – he was often among the players covering the most ground during his time in Serie A – he is also a threat in the final third, as his 49 goal contributions in Italy attest – not to mention an excellent strike on his Samp debut against Spezia in the Coppa Italia.

Aaron Hickey impressed as a two-footed full-back who could play on either flank under Sinisa Mihajlovic at Bologna, where he was nominated for the Golden Boy award and scored five goals from defence in his second season before earning his big-money move.

Former Hibernian left-back Josh Doig’s attacking threat has been his greatest asset at Verona and Sassuolo – underlined with a tidy goal in the cup last week – and he looks better prepared than ever to make a splash in the top-flight this season at the age of 23 after a good campaign in the second tier. The influence of his coach, Italy’s 2006 World Cup-winning left-back hero Fabio Grosso, must have helped.  

But Lewis Ferguson has been the greatest revelation, winning the Premio Bulgarelli for Serie A midfielder of the year in 2023-24 after scoring six goals to fire them into the Champions League, then returning from an ACL injury to captain the Rossoblu to their first trophy in 51 years with the Coppa Italia last season.  

No wonder, then, that Bologna’s sporting director Marco Di Vaio was delighted with the decision to dip into the Scottish market twice in the space of two years, telling the Athletic that the deals for Hickey and Ferguson were “great for us.”  

“We were able to get players with great mentalities and work ethics. They give 100 per cent every day. They’ve got quality. They were two very positive surprises,” he added.

All four players who made direct moves from Scotland to Italy in the last seven years have been a success, despite all of them taking the leap between the ages of 18-22.

There has been more hype around the 18-year-old Miller than any of his predecessors coming from Scotland, likely because of the fierce competition for his signature and his increased profile after earning his first senior Scotland caps in June.  

But confidence in his ability to settle will no doubt have been increased by the examples that have come before.  

And Udinese are nothing if not confident. The club called Miller “one of the brightest talents in Europe” on his arrival, while head coach Kosta Runjaic has dubbed him an “extraordinary talent” before he has even kicked a ball in a Zebrette shirt.

Money Spinners

There is one more reason that Italian clubs are placing their transfer window crosshairs on Scotland – cold, hard cash.

Not only do Scots players tend to thrive in Serie A, be it raw youngsters or established talents, but the financial benefits of shopping in the Scottish Premiership can be huge.

Hickey’s move to Bologna from Hearts really set the bar in this regard. Within just two years, the Rossoblu sold the full-back to Brentford for £17million – around 10 times what they had paid for him.

Verona also cashed in on Doig for a big profit, selling him to Sassuolo after 18 months for a reported €6.5m (£5.6m), almost double the £3m they had forked out to Hibernian for his signature. 

Bologna would have found themselves enjoying another windfall had they decided to sell Ferguson by now, too.

The midfielder cost them just £3m when he joined from Aberdeen in 2022, but after three standout years at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara he is now valued at £24m by Transfermarkt and few would raise an eyebrow at the club demanding more than that should suitors come knocking.

There is money to be made in investing in young Scottish talent then, and Udinese will undoubtedly have had that in mind when forking out a reported £4.75m to Motherwell for Miller – a fee that marked a club record sale for the Steelmen, but a relatively minor outlay for the Italians.

Should the teenage prodigy shine in Friuli under the guidance of Kosta Runjaic, it will surely only deepen a rapidly growing conviction among clubs in Italy that the Scottish market is worth serious consideration, be their motives financial or technical, short-term or long-term.