A quick peak around the league 14 rounds in. Things have settled into 2 distinct groups. You have the top 3 with Inter 11 points ahead of 4th place Roma. Then you have 17 teams that are separated by only 16 points. Lots of movement up and down in that group though.
Ratings
INTER (1st) – The best team and organization in the league right now and it’s not even close. They know exactly who they are and stay the course. Excellent coach. Excellent management that doesn’t necessarily focus on getting the best players but the RIGHT players. Perfectly balanced from front to back. They put down a marker by destroying Napoli on Sunday. Getting Sommer over the summer (see what i did there?) was an absolute coup. Martinez will run away wit the scoring title and they SHOULD win the league. The pursuit of Champions league glory will keep things tight but after coming up short the last 2 seasons they should be on top. If they blow this it will be because they try for a treble and players start breaking down. So far they have been incredibly healthy.
JUVENTUS (2nd) – Every year we look at teams with little or no European commitments and always give them a slight edge. When that team is Juve and the coach is Allegri you certainly better pay attention. You look at this roster and this is NOT the best team in the league. It’s a collection of underachievers (Vlahovic), overachievers (Gatti) and guys coming off injury (Chiesa). The keeper has been accused of being over the hill for 2 years now. Despite all that King Max continues to be the best coach in the league. Contract year Rabiot has been stellar in the midfield. Bremer is finally finding his feet in the back. They might not be able to TAKE this title from Inter but they will be right behind all year long waiting for them to slip up.
MILAN (3rd) – Despite all the negativity and complaining about the management change and Pioli and the training staff we are still 3rd. Scoring has been reasonably balanced with 7 players with 2 or more goals. The defense, the only unit intact going into this season, has bent but not broken. The midfield has been a work in progress all year but the return of Bennacer should go a long ways towards stabilizing things. The attack has been decent but I believe there is more to come. With Leao-Giroud-Piulisic together we have fired on all cylinders. With other pieces it’s been tough but there have been good signs of late. Chukwueze is ready to take flight. Dropping out of Europe all together would mean we also will be in position to make a run at a title if Inter slip up.
ROMA (4th) – Roma have had the easiest schedule in the league so far. That changes as they play #2 Juve, #5 Napoli, #6 Fiorentina, #7 Bologna and #8 Atalanta before the halfway mark. Their 4 games against the top 10 include 2 draws and 0 wins. This is the usual Roma. Beat the garbage. Do nothing against the top teams. Let’s see if they are still top 4 after round 19. On the positive the offense has been great. Lukaku and Dybala are doing their parts as Roma have the second most goals in the league. The negative is the defense is still poor and the keeper is crap. Soon they will have to decide whether the goal is top 4 or European glory. Mourinho wants trophies and doesn’t care if he scorches the earth behind him. My guess is they ultimately end up 5th or 6th and end up with no trophies.
NAPOLI (5th) – What a shit show huh? It all started with waiting ALL SUMMER to address the gaping hole at CB and has gone mostly sideways and backwards since. Osimhen was grumpy then hurt and then grumpy again. AND he leaves for AFCON in a few weeks. Garcia got chased out of town. The owner remains crazy. Natan is not good. Meret all of a sudden looks very average. Mazzari? I think folks thought he couldn’t screw things up too much but I think the realization that he could steer this team to 7th or 8th is very real. Starting the starters away to Madrid in the CL with Inter coming to town was galactically stupid. So much so that I immediately bet HEAVY on Inter to win that game. For those who thought Milan’s title defense was bad, we got Napoli over here saying HOLD MY BEER!
FIORENTINA (6th) – Like last year Fiorentina are once again attempting to battle on 2 fronts. Right now that has them qualified for the next round and 6th in Serie A. Not bad. Pretty much exactly what they could have hoped for. Being qualified and a light league schedule for the next few weeks should give them a chance to pick up some points. Jack and Nico Gonzalez have led the scoring but they need others to step up. There’s been 11 different goal scorers so there are options. The defense has been ok but they need to turn some of these losses into wins. Problem is that kind of thing just isn’t in Italiano’s DNA. He is what he is. It’s Conference League and push forward or bust.
BOLOGNA (7th) – Speaking of draws…. Bologna has 7 of them. Their only 2 losses are away to Milan and Fiorentina. The defense has been rock solid. They are 3rd in the league with only 11 goals conceded. The offense has struggled mightily but that’s more due to how they play than anything else. Zirksee and Orsolini lead the way with 5 and 4 goals respectively. Ferguson has pitched in with 3 from the midfield. Almost no one else is pitching in though. If Motta’s men are to make that next leap they have to turn some of these draws into wins, especially on the road. At home they have 16 points from 7. On the road? Just 6 from 7. Keep an eye out though. They had almost all their toughest games away from home this first round. They get all those teams at home on the back end and if they can win some watch out.
ATALANTA (8th) – Atalanta are slowly fading into the distance. They had a nice start but have just 1 point from their last 4 in the league. The former road warriors of the league have just 10 points from 8 on the road this year. That wouldn’t be bad if they were great at home. 10 points from 6 at home doesn’t sound great does it? After flying a little close to the sun for a few years they have now come back to earth. Granted sitting in the 7-10 slots in Serie A isn’t a failure. They’ve come a long way. My question at this point would be this: While they are clearly making money selling off all these youngsters, do they still have to? Could they have kept Hojlund another year or two and made a run? I would say at this point, yes. Otherwise they will remain a feeder team with very occasional successes.
LAZIO (9th) – I really thought year 2 of Sarri was gonna be huge. They finished 4th last year with a great defense and looked poise to solidify that level. Then the Saudis came along and stole SMS. That was the first crack. Then Immobile started to look old. The offense has stagnated. The signings haven’t been great. The defense has been good but not great like it was last year. That has made a struggling offense look even worse. They are scoring barely a goal a game. The only teams below them in goals are in the bottom 5. They were that team out of Europe that could focus solely on the league and finished 2nd. This year they have Europe and are 9th sitting a lot closer to the bottom (12 points) than the top (16) in points.
TORINO (10th) – Tell me if you have heard this story before. Low scoring. Tough defense. Hell to play against. That’s what Jurc does and that’s why they thrive. You’d have thought losing Schurr for the year would have changd all that but Buongiorno has been fantastic since replacing him. He’s young, Italian and big. He could be the next guy they sell off for HUGE money. Scoring has been iffy but Zapata awakening this week could be a sign of things to come. They have the players to attack but Juric will always play it tight. It limits their ceiling but also means they will never be in the relegation fight.
MONZA (11th) – MONZA CONTINUE TO MONZA! It’s true! Last year it was more smoke and mirrors but this year they have settled into a real plan. Colpani has emerged a star. Colombo has been a perfect addition. Pessina remains a cornerstone. Dare I say Gagliardini has been good as well? The margin is thin but Palladino remains resolute. They have just 1 loss at home and have only conceded 5 in 7. They are nearly just as good away with 8 points from 7. It’s always gonna be a battle against them. If they can win more at home a run at the top 7 is very possible.
FROSINONE (12th) – SURPRISE SURPRISE! They had a great start and then a wobble… but have since circled the wagons. They are rock solid at home with 16 points from 7 with their only loss coming to Napoli. The only team more points at home is Juve with 17. They have just 2 points on the road but they also have had one of the toughest road schedules in the league. That should even out in the second half. Leading the way is Soule who has been a revelation. Behind him is a group of solid if not spectacular players led by the Brazilian Reiner. Like the best teams they know exactly who they are. They are gonna attack. They are gonna concede… but then they are gonna attack more. Di Francesco’s group is like a poor man’s Fiorentina. That resolute discipline should serve them well and keep them up.
LECCE (13th) – Lecce lost Hjulmand and Colombo last summer and I thought they might be in trouble. They still had some good parts and the rock solid Falcone in goal but that are no assurances in football. They brought in Krstovic and Ramadani and have hardly skipped a beat. Krstovic is an excellent little striker and Ramadani has stepped in to the center mid spot and held it down. Their overall model is spot on. The management group and D’aversa are doing great things. Keeping that spine intact will keep them above water. Almqvist has been another revelation that will most likely attract attention next summer.
GENOA (14th) – Gilardino is doing great things with newly promoted Genoa so far. It’s a huge club so the backing is strong. Gudmundsson, Retegui and Malinovsky are all threats. Frendup, ‘Sharpest elbows in the league’ Thorsby and Badelj help hold the center. The back line isn’t great but it has been slowly improving. As they find that balance they will get better and better. The road performance has been woeful but that is always tough for newly promoted teams. Lots of guys new to the big stage. This group will be fun to watch down the stretch.
SASSUOLO (15th) – Oh boy. Trying to evaluate this group is like trying to bet on them. IMPOSSIBLE. They have beaten both Inter and Juve yet somehow have losses to Frosinone and Monza. They score 4 one game and get shut out the next. Honestly I’ve given up trying to figure them out. The only constant is Berardi. He just keeps doing his thing year after year. Thorstvedt and Boloca are the next young talents that will most likely be in the shop window soon. It looked last year like Lauriente MIGHT be that guy but he has 1 goal in 14 matches this year.
UDINESE (16th) – Udinese have 9 draws in 15 games. NINE! On the road they have 7 points from 7 which isn’t bad. They couldn’t score early but since Cioffi returned as coach they have scored in 8 of their last 9 games. During that period they have 8 points including their only win. It’s hard to say whether he is the answer but what you can say is that they have been better. Samardzic has been great in the midfield while Lucca is slowly cementing his place up top. There are some pieces there that should keep them up. Whether any of them stay beyond this season is a different story.
EMPOLI (17th) – Through 7 games Empoli had just 1 goal and 1 win. They had been outscored 16-1. Since then they have circled the wagons and have 8 points from 6 games. During that period they have ‘only’ been outscored 10-8 and have wins over Napoli and Fiorentina. That’s progress baby! Maleh in midfield and Beresha in goal keep them viable. Lazarus Caputo up top is always a threat. Can they compete for anything? No. Will they stay up? Probably? It’s hard to say right now. I think they are still the worst team in terms of depth and talent but the weakest team doesn’t always go down.
HELLAS VERONA (18th) – Can you believe they won their first 2 games this year? Yeah! Me neither! Can you believe they have 4 draws and 8 losses in the 12 games since? YES! EVERYONE BELIEVES THIS! Why? They stink. They should have gone down last year and will go down this year. Please go down. Go away. Okay maybe that’s harsh. Ngonge is an excellent player up top. On a better team he’s a certain double digit scorer. Otherwise almost anyone else of consequence is over 30. They are a tough nut at home which usually keeps them viable. They also tend to get themselves in some wild games like the 3-3 away to Udinese on Sunday. Count them out at your own risk but IT’S TIME.
CAGLIARI (19th) – It was fun to have them back but they can leave now.
Ok I was gonna leave it at that but that’s not fair.
Yeah maybe it’s fine.
It’s fine.
Good luck Tinkerman.
SALERNITANA (20th) – Poor Pippo. After arrivng at Salernitana they have 5 points from 6. Not bad. Much better than the 3 points from 8 before that. They have some players that’s for sure. After a slow start Dia now has 4 goals and looks back to normal. Coulibaly is OK. So is Cabral. Ochoa is who we thought he was. He’s fine on his day but lots of those days it’s the difference between losing 5-0 or 2-0. Pippo has his work cut out for him but I wouldn’t count them out. They have risen from the dead before.
Final Thoughts
There’s a long way to go but things are starting the settle. The battle for 4th will go to the last day as will the fight for survival. It’s not the best league in the world for nothing folks!
ENJOY THE CALCIO!