Alessandro Costacurta

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Costacurta was affectionally known to his fans as 'Billy', due to his thin physique in his youth, and his notable skill at basketball (as the local basketball team of Milan, Olimpia Milano, was referred to as 'Billy' during the late 1970s, the team's main shirt sponsor). Originally an AC Milan youth side product, during his professional career Costacurta would go on to play for the senior club for over 20 seasons, after a brief spell on loan at Monza in Serie C1 during the 1986–87 season. Costacurta was already a young member of the senior squad during the 1985–86 season, but failed to make a single appearance. Before being sent to Monza on loan, Costacurta would make his Milan debut in the Coppa Italia during the 1986–87 season, but would not make his Serie A debut with Milan until the following year, under Arrigo Sacchi. Costacurta made his first Serie A appearance on 25 October 1987 against Hellas Verona on the sixth matchday of the season. Milan would go on to win the match 1–0, as well as the Serie A title, but Costacurta received limited playing opportunities that season, due to the presence of the more experienced Filippo Galli in his position. Overall, Costacurta managed 7 appearances in Serie A, and one appearance in the Coppa Italia that season.

In Their Own Story

The 1988–89 season would see Costacurta gain more playing opportunities and appear more frequently for the club, as he would feature in Milan's 3–1 win over Sampdoria in the 1988 Supercoppa Italiana. He would make 26 appearances in Serie A that season, and would also win his first European Cup title after Milan defeated Steaua București 4–0 at the Camp Nou, Barcelona. Costacurta played the first 74 minutes of the final before being substituted by Filippo Galli. During the 1989–90 Season, Costacurta won his second consecutive European Cup with Milan, defeating Benfica 1–0 in the final in Vienna, and starting the play which led to Frank Rijkaard's match-winning goal. He also featured in Milan's Intercontinental Cup win in Tokyo over Atlético Nacional, and in the European Supercup victory over Johan Cruyff's Barcelona. Costacurta also scored his first goal in Serie A during that season, in a 3–1 away defeat to Milanese rivals Internazionale in the Derby della Madonnina. Milan would also reach the Coppa Italia final that season. In Sacchi's final season at the club, Costacurta would become a starting centreback alongside Franco Baresi, as well as full-backs Mauro Tassotti and Paolo Maldini, in Sacchi's four-man defensive line, which is regarded as one of the greatest defences of all time. Costacurta would make 25 appearances in Serie A that season, and he would also win his second consecutive Intercontinental Cup and European Super Cup trophies.

Reader's Guide

Under Capello's Milan, Costacurta continued to be a permanent member of the starting line-up, and he won four Serie A titles (including three consecutive titles in 1991–92, 1992–93 and 1993–94, as well as another title in 1995–96), a Champions League title in 1994, an UEFA Super Cup in 1994, as well as three consecutive Italian Supercups in 1992, 1993 and 1994. Milan also managed to reach three consecutive Champions League finals between 1992–93 and 1994–95. However, Costacurta missed the 1994 Champions League final win over Barcelona on 18 May because of a suspension, having been sent-off in the semi-final match against Monaco. Costacurta also helped Milan to win the 1991–92 Serie A title undefeated, as Milan went on an Italian record of 58 matches unbeaten. He also played a key role in Milan's defensive line in the 1993–94 title, by only conceding 15 goals all season, as Milan finished the season with the best defence in Italy. Following Capello's departure after the 1995–96 title win, as well as the aging and retirement of certain key players, Milan faced dark times in their history, failing to qualify for European competitions in both 1996–97 and 1997–98 seasons, and undergoing several managerial changes. However, Costacurta, through his joint leadership in defense alongside Maldini, continued to be a key member of the starting line-up. With the arrival of Alberto Zaccheroni during the 1998–99 season, Costacurta featured in Zaccheroni's new three-man defense alongside Maldini and Luigi Sala; during this time he usually played in the middle of the back three. Costacurta was also named Milan's vice-captain that season, behind Maldini, following the retirement of Baresi and Tassotti. At the end of the season, Milan managed to capture their 16th Scudetto win, and Costacurta's sixth in total, finishing ahead of Lazio by a single point.

Did You Know?

• Costacurta was affectionally known as 'Billy' due to his thin physique in youth and his skill at basketball, as the local basketball team Olimpia Milano was referred to as 'Billy' during the late 1970s, the team's main shirt sponsor.
• He made his Serie A debut on 25 October 1987 against Hellas Verona, a match Milan won 1–0.
• Costacurta missed the 1994 Champions League final win over Barcelona because of a suspension after being sent off in the semi-final against Monaco.
• On 21 November 2006, he became the oldest footballer ever to play in the Champions League at 40 years and 211 days, in Milan's 1–0 loss to AEK Athens.
• In his final match for Milan on 19 May 2007, he scored a penalty in a 3–2 defeat against Udinese, becoming the oldest goalscorer in Serie A, a record broken by Zlatan Ibrahimović in 2023.