Before previewing this week’s matches in the Italian league, a round of applause goes to all of the underdogs that qualified for the Champions League round of 16. I am pleased to say that all 3 of the Italian teams qualified for the first time in a long while, namely AC Milan, Internazionale FC and even SSC Napoli. The Partenopei came out of the group of death in second place with Bayern Munich FC topping the group. Manchester City who spent a whopping $123 million pounds are out! Manchester United, who had the easiest group and the finalist of last year, are also heading out. When will the soccer world learn that you need balance to win championships? A team full of superstars doesn’t always work!
In week 15 of the Serie A, Internazionale will take on ACF Fiorentina at the San Siro. The Nerazzurri need a home win to salvage their season that is rapidly diminishing, while the Viola is slowly making their presence felt under new head coach Delio Rossi. Novara will play host to SSC Napoli. This will be a tough game for the home side who is sitting in 18th place. The Napolitanit will look to carry their momentum after their historic Champions League qualification. Bologna FC will play at home and will most likely struggle against the talented Rossoneri who seem to be winning with ease in the Serie A. Although in past seasons in past seasons, Bologna have always seemed to give the Diavoli some trouble. The Bologna defence did look tough to beat in mid-week Coppa Italia action against a Juventus side that keeps attacking. Udinese FC , currently tied for second place, will welcome the flying donkies of Chievo Verona at the Stadio Friuli. The Bianconeri of Udine will look to keep their winning streak at home alive – seven wins out of seven. It has been very difficult to play in Udine this year as Francesco Guidolin’s, they need to keep their home record perfect to try to get a Champions League spot. In the final match, AS Roma will challenge the league leaders and still undefeated Juventus FC. This has always been a grudge match. The Giallorossi are going through a severe crisis at the moment finishing their last Serie A match with 8 men leaving head coach, Luis Enrique, dealing with formation problem. On the other hand, The Old Lady of Italian football is currently playing at her best. Juve boss Antonio Conte has done a fantastic job demonstrating what juventinità means –to play with heart, grit and determination sweating tears of black and white in the process. Against Bologna in the Coppa Italia, Conte rested all but two of his main players leaving Andrea Barzagli and Leonardo Bonucci in the heart of defence and the Bianconeri were still dominant over the Felsinei . This is a big step forward for Seria A to go get its 4th place Champions League back!
…and that is the last word on Serie A.
Frank Giuliano.
