So, already a week has been played of the Serie A season, the transfer market is over, and teams have made last minute moves to improve. That was just a trial run. Now with the upcoming second week, this is when the real season starts. So, it’s time to share what you think will happen this season. And what better way then with polls! In the following post, you’ll find a series of polls where you can vote on various topics of the Serie A season. This is better then just telling you to share in the comments, because I know there are some shy people out there that like to just read this terrible calcio coverage I write and shake their heads in disgust at the screen, refusing to comment. The polls will close on Friday at 12 PM est, and we’ll see what everyone thinks. Remember you can only vote once per poll. (And also remember that on some polls like relegation and european qualification you can choose multiple answers)

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If your new to the Italy Offside, usually the Monday after the Serie A weekend I’ll put up a post called “The Weekend that was in Serie A” where I’ll try to mention the weekend’s best stories, including some bad attempts at humor and very simple analysis. So, Serie A finally arrived. After the terrible World Cup for Italy and the summer months of anticipation, the league we love most finally began this past weekend. It’s a good thing, because the last two weekends for me have consisted of turning on EPL games, and then turning them off after 5 minutes because I got bored. No league excites me like Serie A does. Give me a dull, defensive, tactical 0-0 between two small Italian sides than Chelsea or Manchester United hammering some newly-promoted team 6-0 any day. I just hope there are people out there that feel the same way, or else I just look like a nut. Also if your new to the Italy Offside, and this is like the first day of school for you, my name if Francesco. I’ve been in charge of the Italy blog here since the spring of 2008 and I enjoy writing incoherent drivel about Serie A that people like to read. At least I think people like to read it. It helps me sleep at night. Welcome to the Italy Offside, and if you learn at least one new thing about the calcio world every day here, my job is done. Anyway, here’s the weekend that was in Serie A’s opening kickoff:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Milan pulled off arguably the greatest transfer in Serie A this summer. Back in May some articles reported that Milan might have been interested in the big Swede (they had tried to get him in 2006, but Inter were faster and beat them to the deal), but it finally became reality the past week. Galliani and super agent Mino Raiola (there will be an article on him sometime this week) managed to talk Barcelona down to a loan deal with forced option to buy in the summer of 2011 for only 24 million. That is some deal. The move made Milan fans instantly optimistic about the upcoming season, but nobody should get their hopes up just yet, despite the 4-0 rout of a scared, newly promoted Lecce side. Ibrahimovic was presented at half-time (pictured above) and said in his funny sounding Italian, “Remember this: I want to win everything and I’m here to win everything.” Milan fans everywhere hope he’s right. In the meantime, I have happily added this song to my ipod.

Juventus starting where they left off: losing…

Yes, Juventus have tried to enter a new era this summer by creating a whole team from nothing, and yes, 6 of the 11 starters yesterday were new signings, but very poor first outing by la Vecchia Signora. Gigi Delneri’s side never really threatened Bari all game, and the new signings didn’t really shine all that much. Juve fans that thought the team’s problems would be fixed immediately with all the new changes are wrong. This team needs time to gel, and much more work has to be done by Delneri to get the squad to play the football he wants. They might bring a few more signings in before tomorrow’s deadline to improve the situation. But hey, look at the bright side Juve fans, last season Juve started brilliantly and look what happened. Maybe the reverse has to happen this season.

The newly-promoted sides

Lecce and Brescia had poor outings overall, being dominated by Milan and Parma. Cesena was the surprise of the weekend, holding Roma to a scoreless draw at the Olimpico, with ex-Roma goalkeeper Francesco Antonioli the hero. Cesena looked like a good side, but their attack lacks severe quality besides Giaccherini and despite the presence of Serie A’s footballing god Erjon Bogdani. Their defense looked shaky at times too. We can’t really judge Lecce from yesterday because Milan was better in every aspect, while Brescia seemed like the same Brescia you see every season in Serie B, no improvement.

Sebastian Giovinco

The pint sized fantasista was one of the best performers of the weekend. Giovinco was the man of the match against Brescia this weekend, providing a splendid assist on the first goal and had a hand in the second. Late in the game he was taken off to a standing ovation. Can this be the season Giovinco finally explodes? Throughout the years number 10 type players have always flourished with a Gialloblu jersey on, and this season could be yet another example. Are Juve completely sure they made the right decision in letting him go, especially since it was so evident yesterday they had nobody on the pitch that could provide a spark?

Sampdoria taking out their anger on Lazio

Sampdoria were heartbroken after they narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Champions League group stage, and manager Mimmo Di Carlo wanted them to transmit their anger into an excellent performance against Lazio. He got them from his squad, who after an even first half went on to score two in the second half and get their first 3 points in front of their home crowd. The first was scored by Cassano on a penalty won by Daniele Dessena and the second was a nice volley from Guberti. Di Carlo is hoping they can take that momentum into the next game, which is a big one against Juventus.

First sacking of the season

Surprisingly (or not so surprisingly because it happens all the time in Serie A) we had our first manager sacking of the season in this first weekend. Bologna manager Franco Colomba was let go by new Bologna owner Sergio Porcedda. Why? He said that Colomba was not agreeing to the project put forth by the club. It took you all summer to realize that Mr. Porcedda? So, Bologna’s youth team manager was in charge of today’s game with Inter and Porcedda said a new manager will be announced on Wednesday. According to reports it will be Alberto Malesani, the man who knows how to use the word cazzo</em efficiently.

Speaking of Bologna-Inter…

The Rafa Benitez era in Serie A started with a goalless draw today. Great point for Bologna considering their coaching problems. Inter shouldn’t be that worried, they’ve started the past 3 seasons with a draw (and who has won the scudetto in the past 3 seasons?) and still players are working hard to get back into form. At least we’ve seen over the past few days that the players on Inter are in fact human.

Mesto’s Goal

The Genoa winger’s match-winning, improvised bicycle kick goal was definitely the best goal of the weekend. Watch it here.

Fiorentina-Napoli

For me this was the most exciting game of the weekend. It was a very open game and both sides looked to attack. In the end, a draw was the best result because of the even play. However, on replay, Edinson Cavani’s goal did not cross the line, further pushing the debate of goal line technology. Fiorentina’s new signing Gaetano D’Agostino did well pushed up to his old trequartista position, and scored a great volley. Good game from two teams who may be direct competitors for European places this season.

Serie A goes on break

Even though it just started, it’s already taken away from us for a week! Prandelli’s national team start Euro 2012 qualifying this weekend and have games on Friday and Tuesday against world powerhouses Estonia and the Faroe Islands (what’s with UEFA’s weird new scheduling? It always used to be Saturday and Wednesday). So Serie A will return the weekend of September 12th.

Live game updates on twitter

If you didn’t know already, the Italy Offside is on twitter (link below). This weekend I experimented with tweeting live updates of games from the weekend. I did Udinese-Genoa and Bari-Juve this weekend. I don’t know if anyone noticed or even liked it, but I’ll continue to do it. So if you can’t watch a Serie A game on the weekend for whatever weekend, visit my twitter and read live updates as the action is happening. Also on my twitter I tweet other calcio news and updates daily like transfers or random thoughts. So if your interested in that, follow me.

Follow me on Twitter
Italy Offside Twitter

I think the true test of a team is not how they handle success, but how well they are able to pick themselves up after a defeat. Well, with the start of Serie A nigh upon us, I hope the team can find the strength of character to pick themselves up and get on with winning. Lets put the cup loss behind us and look to the future. That second star isn’t going to win itself.

What: Bologna v Inter, Serie A opener
Where: Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, Bologna
When: Monday, August 30, 8:45pm local time (11:45am pacific, 2:45pm eastern)
How to Watch: Live on Fox Soccer or find a stream: MyP2P, Rojadirecta, Ustream, and ATDHE.net

Since I have to work all day Monday, Kirby was kind enough to offer to host the liveblog on his site, the ESPN Soccer Blog for Inter.
Maybe he will have more luck than I did for the Super Cup.

So, here we are at the start of a shiny new season. A blank slate, if you will, on which to emblazon our name on. And it all begins with Bologna. Last year, Inter won this match handily, with goals from Milito, Balotelli, and Cambiasso. Zalayeta pulled one back for them, but in the end, it finished a comfortable 1-3 for Inter.

.
.

THEM

This is actually a pretty interesting tie to start the new year with. On the face of it, it seems like an easy start – Inter hasn’t lost to Bologna away since 2002 – but I firmly believe there are no gimmes in the Serie A. Plus, with their change in ownership this past summer, the connections between Inter and Bologna are stronger than ever. A quick look at the roster shows a fair number of familiar faces:

• Emiliano Viviano (GK), co-owned by Inter
• Luca Siligardi (MF), on loan from Inter
• Riccardo Meggiorini (F), Inter youth product
• Rene Krhin (MF), co-owned by Inter

So, in some ways, this game is a family affair.

The big news out of the Bologna camp is that they have let their coach, Franco Colomba, go. And just two days before the season opener. No official word on who the new coach will be, but their youth team coach, Paolo Aiello, and goalkeeping coach, Franco Paleari, will sit on the bench for tomorrow’s game.

This could go either way for us (and them). Sometimes there is a bit of a bump when a new coach comes – everyone tries a bit harder, there is renewed optimism. Other times, though, the players are out of sorts and a bit confused with the new ideas (sound familiar?) and things need some time to really click.

The club has called up 20 players for their opening match:

Portieri: Lombardi, Lupatelli, Viviano.
Difensori: Cherubin, Britos, Esposito, Garics, Moras, Portanova, Rubin.
Centrocampisti: Casarini, Della Rocca, Ekdal, Elia, Mudingayi, Siligardi.
Attaccanti: Di Vaio, Gimenez, Meggiorini, Paponi.

Unfortunately, Krhin is still suffering from a little injury he picked up this summer and is not expected back for a couple weeks. Still and all, considering our recent form, this group might just be enough for us. (I am really truly trying to stay positive, I promise)

They do know they are not allowed to actually carry the ball in games, right?

US

Benitez has called up 20 players of his own:
Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar, Castellazzi, Orlandoni.
Defenders: Cordoba, Zanetti, Lucio, Materazzi, Samuel, Chivu, Santon.
Midfielders: Stankovic, Sneijder, Mariga, Cambiasso, Obi, Coutinho.
Strikers: Eto’o, Milito, Pandev, Biabiany.

The big absence here, of course, is Maicon. Apparently, he took a knock to the knee in the Atletico game so is not available. Still, with Branca rumored to be in Madrid, it is fueling all sorts of speculation that his sale will be our August surprise. Only time will tell, but at this late date and after all the assurances that he was off the market, that would sure come as a punch to the gut. Thiago Motta is still out with recovering from surgery. Expect him out at least a month.

We can do this, I know we can.

Benitez had his usual presser today, where basically the press hammered him for losing the Super Cup, asking just what he was going to do to turn the team around. Basically, he just begged for more time and pointed out that Inter often have a slow start to the season, saying:

“Losing is never good, but I am secure in the reaction of my players. We know that the beginning of the season is always difficult, we had some examples of that yesterday. Inter are a team that, over the last three years , never started the season in the best way has always needed time. I believe that in this sense, having lost their last game would give an extra motivation because now we are here to do well against Bologna.”

Ok, so we need time and to change a few things. Any idea what we need to change or how long it may take? Nope. No idea:

“We don’t know what is the time we need to change things and we do not know how much we will change. We will begin by improving the little things and see if little by little, we can improve even large ones, but at this point we think above all of winning. How should we do this? By placing in the field the qualities that we have because it will not be the from that makes the difference: what will make the difference is our mentality, the intensity and the concentration of the players because if the coaches are good to do something, the difference is always made by the players.”

I dont know what he is trying to say with that last bit (”…perchè se gli allenatori sono buoni per fare qualcosa, a fare la differenza saranno sempre i giocatori“), but I think it is clear that we need a new attitude. I really hope that Rafa has the chutzpah to make that happen.

There is a bit of good news, though: Santon seems ready to play again. Also, there is some speculation that Coutinho will get his Serie A debut tomorrow (although Rafa says that he is young and he will not put Coutinho under pressure).

Is Coutinho ready for Serie A?

I will not lie, I am hoping for a bright start to the season – certainly at least a draw – but I just do not understand what Rafa wants this team to do. I dont understand how he can inject pace into the legs of our aging back line. It is all well and good to have a system you think can win, but if you dont have the players to execute that plan, you can’t force people to be something they are not – like being 8 years younger than they are.

All of this means that I dont have the first clue who Rafa will start out there tomorrow (anyone want to venture a guess?).

Julio Cesar
Santon? Zanetti? Lucio Samuel Chivu? Santon?
Mariga? Stankovic? Cambiasso
Eto’o Sneijder Pandev? Coutinho?
Milito?

I just dont know.

On the plus side, Bologna may be the perfect team to set the squad back on their feet after the disappointment of losing the super cup. They are good enough to give us trouble but perhaps will be in enough disarray that the team wont need to kill themselves in order to win. In fact, I am officially turning this frown upside down. This will be a good game for Inter. The team will play well and we will all feel a lot better about the season to come.

Everyone on board with this? Good. Because I want nothing but the positive-ist of vibes for this, the happiest of thoughts. We fans are going to use whatever mojo or psychic energy we have to push this team. What other choice do we have?
I’ve got spirit, yes I do. I’ve got spirit, how about you?

Dont forget about the Liveblog for the game on Kirby’s blog.
And if you haven’t submitted an entry for my contest, you have about 7 hours to get that to me before the contest closes (midnight, pacific time).

FORZA INTER

In other news, Sneijder thinks the team needs a new player – not the best news. Sounds like he is worried. Not good not good.

And Javier Zanetti won the Gaetano Scirea career achievement award. Great news, well deserved.

So you may of noticed that in the past few days the Italy Offside hasn’t really been updated. And some of you may have disappointed, while others were probably saying “yes that stupid blog isn’t being updated! finally!”. But the fact of the matter is, I haven’t been updating because I’ve been working on this season preview. It might seem easy to write up a brief summary on the 20 Serie A clubs, but it isn’t, trust me (especially when you just decide to write everything from memory like I did. I promise I did not look up one single thing). Another problem is the transfer window isn’t even over yet, so if I bash some team and then next week they make excellent last minute signings and have a great season, I look dumb. So just remember that this preview is pre-transfer window closing. I think I say this every year, but this Serie A season is shaping up to be very interesting. Inter come off the greatest season in their history and start anew with Benitez, 11 of the 20 Serie A sides decided to hire a new manager, no more moviola on tv, Zlatan Ibrahimovic might be back in Milan but with a different jersey, and there are already people betting on who the first manager sacked will be (I’m going with Cesena’s Massimo Ficcadenti). So, sit back, relax, and read my Serie A preview (if you want of course).

Bari

Last season Bari returned to the top flight for the first time in 8 years and were one of the revelations of the season. Giampiero Ventura’s side played an attractive style of play home and away, and weren’t afraid to really attack the big teams. Fast forward to this season, and it’s hard to say if Bari can have a similar season. A big problem is that they lost their great defensive pairing from last season of Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Ranocchia (they went to Juventus and Genoa respectively). Those two young starlets were a big reason why Bari did well and without them their defense isn’t as strong, especially since they didn’t do the best job of replacing them on the transfer market (Marco Rossi and Andrea Raggi are nothing special). Giampiero Ventura spent all summer praising Sebastian Giovinco in the press and stating his intent to sign him over and over again, but in the end the small fantasista never showed up. It’s a shame, because he really could have given Bari that extra attacking edge, especially since their current attack lacks flair besides Edgar Barreto. They have made some decent signings, like Algerian striker Ghezzal from Siena and promising young winger Marco D’Alessandro on loan from Roma. Bottom line: I don’t think Bari can repeat last season’s magic, and while they are good enough to avoid relegation, that’s all they will do this season.

Bologna

If there is a Most Improved Team award, I think it has to go to Bologna, at least on paper. The most important thing for Bologna is that the clueless Menarini family is gone, and new owner Sergio Porcedda seems really enthusiastic and willing to spend money to make Bologna better. Bologna have narrowly survived relegation these past two seasons and the fans want a more tranquil season. This year looks pretty promising. Rather then buying veterans that are passed their sell-by date, Bologna have to decided to bring in promising youngsters that are hungry to do well. Rene Khrin, Albin Ekdal, and Luca Siligardi fit this category. Riccardo Meggiorini has been brought in to partner Marco Di Vaio up front. They covered the fullback department with Matteo Rubin and Gyorgy Garics. They still have some weak spots and their bench isn’t great at all but all in all big step up for Bologna. If all goes well, they can really hope to achieve a tranquil salvation this season.

Brescia

Brescia are finally back in Serie A after 5 years of trying to get back. Will they stay for more than a season? I honestly don’t think so. A short while ago I had written a post about what to expect from the three promoted teams. At that time they had only made one signing: veteran goalkeeper Matteo Sereni. Since then, they finally decided to make some more moves on the transfer market. And I have to say, they are two pretty good moves on the transfer market. Alessandro Diamanti and Eder are the newest additions to a Rondinelle side that lacked excitement. With Diamanti and Eder, they improve in the excitement category. Eder is unproven in Serie A, but if he really is going to be the top player everyone expects him to be he needs to explode some time. Diamanti has Serie A experience and had a pretty good campaign in the EPL with West Ham last season. When he’s on form, he can really make the difference. The question is if these two players will be enough to keep Brescia in the top flight. Like I said above, I honestly don’t think so. They still have a largely Serie B caliber roster, and Iachini isn’t a great manager. They’ve finally reached paradise again, but it will be a short stay.

Cagliari

Cagliari has used the same method every season since getting back to Serie A in 2004 and it has worked so far. A very under the radar transfer market in which relatively unknown players are bought. Those players usually go on to shine and surprise everyone. The group is built around the same core players that know each other well and get the job done. On paper Cagliari have one of the weaker Serie A rosters, yet every season they finish in a great position. This season will be without Max Allegri, but in comes Pierpaolo Bisoli, who led Cesena to Serie A promotion last season and played at Cagliari in the 90’s and knows the environment. Goalkeeper Federico Marchetti may be sold before the transfer window ends because of an argument with Massimo Cellino. It’s rumored that if he’s sold Cagliari will buy ex-Roma goalkeeper Ivan Pelizzoli. Cagliari bought two of Serie B’s top players this summer: midfielder Simone Laner, and fantasista Alex Pinardi (who has played in Serie A with Lecce and Atalanta). The main issue for their season is basically if this same group of players can again play another extraordinary season. Bisoli, although unproven in Serie A, is a smart manager and is capable of steering the ship. We’ll see how it goes.

Catania

Italy’s version of an Argentinian All-Star Team (but the players aren’t really stars) is ready for another year of Serie A action. Another season, another bunch of translators hired. The Sicilians have a new manager in Marco Giampaolo, who has always been considered one of the brightest young Italian managers. One thing that Giampaolo knows how to do well is to put out an organized team with a tight defense. The problem he may face is having to manage this mixed-nationality locker room. Catania bought some new random South Americans this summer as well, an Argentinian named Alejandro Gomez and a Brazilian named Martinho, both midfielders. They kept hold of Maxi Lopez, which is very important, especially if he picks up where he left off last season (scoring goal after goal after goal). And of course, keeping Giuseppe Mascara is always a plus, he’s the real heart and soul of the team, as well as it’s main creative force. If Giampaolo can get the squad organized and under control, they should have a pretty decent season.

Cesena

Cesena are back in the top flight for the first time in 20 years. Many people may immediately write them off and consider them relegation fodder, but Cesena is the type of team you don’t write off. Like I had stated in my post on the promoted teams, teams like Cesena are hard to predict. They could be brilliant or utterly dreadful. The owner Igor Campedelli is young and enthusiastic, and brought in many new faces to reinforce the squad. Cesena can rely on experienced players like Stephen Appiah, Giuseppe Colucci, and Fabio Caserta to help them. And added to that, they have god himself, Erjon Bogdani (please note the sarcasm). I didn’t understand the sale of Brazilian fantasista Do Prado, who was clearly their star player. However, they recently made an interesting signing in goalkeeper Diego Cavalieri from Liverpool, and he could be a pleasant surprise. The bad side is their manager is Massimo Ficcadenti, who’s last Serie A stint at Reggina failed miserably. I think Cesena should have went with someone more experienced. However, if they can survive the rough patch of the first couple of games, Cesena could be a surprise of the season.

Chievo

Chievo starts the season with a new manager, Stefano Pioli, who takes over from Mimmo Di Carlo. Pioli’s only previous Serie A stint was back in 2006/2007 when he was at the helm of hometown club Parma, and was sacked in February for poor results before Claudio Ranieri came in and saved the day. Since then, he’s had some good stints in Serie B and has found himself back in the top flight. Chievo had the usual quiet summer, doing well to keep hold of star goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino and star defender Andrea Mantovani while making some decent buys with Roberto Guana and Mariano Bogliacino. They have given striker Davide Moscardelli his first shot at Serie A since impressing in Serie B for years and their best signing of the summer is defender Marco Andreolli. They don’t have the greatest squad but with good managing from Pioli the team can dream to achieve salvation again. But if Pioli screws up, it could be a tough time for the Flying Donkeys.

Fiorentina

Fiorentina starts the post-Prandelli era with Sinisa Mihajlovic. After 5 seasons we will see someone new on the Viola bench. Last season was bittersweet for the Viola. They did extremely well in Europe, only being eliminated because of refereeing errors vs. Bayern Munich. However in the season they weren’t the same and wound up finishing outside the European spots. So, Fiorentina will only have Serie A and the Coppa Italia to focus on this season (the low amount of season tickets sold reflects that). Usually every summer sporting director extraordinaire Pantaleo Corvino comes up with these great signings, but this summer it seems like he’s out of ideas. The only players brought in have been midfielder Gaetano D’Agostino (which is a good signing), Alessio Cerci (if he finally explodes it’s a great signing), and Polish goalkeeper Artur Boruc (which I didn’t understand if they have Sebastien Frey, one of the best goalkeepers in Serie A). With Stevan Jovetic’s big injury lay-off, this team lacks flair, and with Mutu serving his suspension until October, the most creative player is 18 year old Serbian Adem Ljajic, who isn’t exactly experienced on the Serie A stage. This may also be the season where 17 year old Senegalese striker Khouma Babacar explodes onto the scene. Mihajlovic is a no-nonsense manager than puts out a team that fights, but can Fiorentina once again aim for high objectives like Champions League qualification? Maybe, just maybe.

Genoa

If Genoa don’t at least challenge for the 4th Champions League spot this season, owner Enrico Preziosi will spend a long time thinking how much more money he has to spend to get Genoa in Champions League (he tried to buy Serie B promotion once in 2005, that didn’t work out). Preziosi is aiming high this season, and his signings reflect that. First, Luca Toni was handed a big contract to be the team’s main goalscorer. Then he managed to sell Andrea Ranocchia to Inter but keep him at Genoa at least for this season on loan. After that he brought in two of Portugal’s World Cup stars: goalkeeper Eduardo and midfielder Miguel Veloso. Then he brought in exciting Brazilian fullback Rafinha. And finally, he bought promising Argentine midfielder Franco Zuculini. He even hinted that he might bring in one more signing before the window ends, and it’s an attacking talent (the names of Gio Dos Santos and Giuseppe Rossi are being thrown around). Giuseppe Sculli was supposed to leave for Inter but then the Nerazzurri canceled the deal, so that benefits Genoa. Genoa have clearly been the best Italian team on the market. If Gasperini, now in his 4th season at the helm of the Rossoblu, can gel all these players together into his 3-4-3 system, Genoa should be quite the force this season, and can definitely aim for a Champions League spot.

Inter

Well, we know that Inter had their best season in their history last season. We know that it will be very hard to repeat. We know that Mourinho left. We know that Balotelli left. In comes Rafa Benitez, and he will look to erase memories of Mourinho from Inter fan’s heads. It’s going to be hard, but they started on the right track with the Italian SuperCoppa win over Roma. Next they will look to win the European Super Cup vs. Atletico Madrid. The transfer campaign was pretty tranquil, and most of the summer was filled with the Maicon and Balotelli sagas. Maicon decided to stay, Balotelli didn’t. Young winger Jonathan Biabiany was brought back to base after an impressive season at Parma. Brazilian fantasista Phillipe Coutinho, who was bought last summer, arrives after staying at Vasco da Gama for one last season. Benitez has a hard task in front of him, and it seems like if he fails to win the Scudetto or something most of the blame will be placed on him, so he’s under some pressure. The players know each other, and who knows, they might still have some magic left in them.

Juventus

Let’s just get to the bottom line with Juve. This is a new era and a new Juve, and the Bianconeri are looking to get rid of these past few post-Calciopoli years and start anew, and aim to win something. Gigi Delneri is handed the keys to this new Juve, while Beppe Marotta has the reigns behind the scenes on the transfer market. He has put together a largely Italian team (which I guess goes well with Juve’s away jersey this season), and brought in Pavel Nedved’s twin (only looks-wise) in Milos Krasic and Uruguayan winger Jorge Martinez (who I still consider a waste of 12 million euro). Lippi favorite Simone Pepe is now playing for Lippi’s favorite team. What a coincidence. Diego has not been given another chance and was sold back to the Bundesliga today. With that money, it seems Juve are bringing in Fabio Quagliarella on loan, and that could be a good signing (Marotta brought Quagliarella to Sampdoria a few years back). For me, the best signing is Alberto Aquilani. If Aquilani can stay healthy (which is a hard task for him), he will be one of the best midfielders in Serie A without a doubt. David Trezeguet, after years of threatening to leave, looks finally set to go for real, and Mauro Camoranesi is on the way out as well. Nobody wants Fabio Grosso, who has declined severely, and has a high salary. Many are unsure what to expect of Juve, especially since many think they just bought many average players who can’t make the difference. But if that works to the advantage of anyone, it does to Delneri, who last season took a fairly average group of Sampdoria players to Champions League qualification.

Lazio

Edy Reja now had a whole pre-season to mold his Lazio team into his style of play, and now we’ll see what the fruits of his labor are. Claudio Lotito sacrificed Aleksander Kolarov for a pretty big fee and used that money to bring in Brazilian midfielder Hernanes, who has been linked with all the top teams in Europe over the past few seasons. It will be interesting to see how he adapts to Serie A, if he explodes Lazio could have a real gem on their hands. One of the things Reja has to try to do though is to get Mauro Zarate to play like he did in his first Italian season rather then last season. In his first season, Zarate looked like Maradona. Last season, at times he looked like Maradona’s illegitimate Neapolitan beach soccer playing son Diego Maradona Jr. Will the real Zarate show up this season? If he does, Zarate and Hernanes could be quite the duo. All in all, Lazio have a good squad, and this season they can look to qualify for Europe instead of floundering around the relegation zone like last season.

Lecce

After one year in Serie B, Lecce finished in first place last season and were crowned Serie B champions. Now they find themselves back in Serie A and hoping to stay more than a year (also the Bari-Lecce derby is back in Serie A for the first time since 2001). Can they last longer than a year? I don’t think they can. They’re squad is ok, but they don’t have a proven Serie A goalkeeper, and their defense is almost all new. Up front, they did well to bring back Javier Chevanton to Lecce. Chevanton is a hero in the Pugliese city, and he made is name with the Giallorosso jersey on. His last appearance with Lecce was in 2004, and now after playing abroad he’s back to lead the line again. Manager Gigi De Canio has always been known as a salvation specialist, but with this squad it might be a little tough. But you never know, anything can happen.

Milan

Milan are different then they were in past years. How you ask? Now they claim to be “low-cost”. They closely watch their books and Berlusconi doesn’t seem to want to put out the money anymore. However, this summer he said he would only pay an extraordinary fee for a player if the player was a superstar. And that player this summer seems to be Zlatan Ibrahimovic. While at the moment both sides are saying they are unsure if the transfer will go through, I’m pretty sure Ibra will be a Milan player by Tuesday. If they do get Ibra, Milan instantly become Inter’s main rivals for the Scudetto. An attack of Ronaldinho-Ibra-Pato makes Milan fans salivate. And let’s not forget Ibra is still only 28 and has some good years left. But enough about Ibra, as it isn’t even certain. At the current time, Milan have a good team. Old, but the players still have quality. They can’t buy anyone on the transfer market because they have too many players with enormous salaries. Years ago Galliani and Co. made the mistake of renewing contracts of players who didn’t deserve a renewal, and giving them a lot of money. Players like Kaladze for example. Most of these contracts expire in the summer of 2011 (including players like Pirlo, Gattuso, and Ambrosini), and next summer the Rossoneri will have to decide what direction they want to go in. In the meantime, they have a bright young manager in Max Allegri who has made the jump from Serie C to Milan all in 3 years. Does Allegri have the personality to manage and succeed at a top club? That remains to be seen. A lot will rely on the health of Nesta, who when in shape is still world class, and Ronaldinho’s desire to actually make an effort. The Boateng signing was good and he can do well, but when Milan is obtaining players on loan from Genoa and not the other way around you know something is wrong…

Napoli

Napoli were terrible last season…..[long pause]…..with Donadoni. Once the ex-Milan winger was sacked and Mazzarri came in, Napoli started playing great football and really made a push for the Champions League. In the end they had to settle for the Europa League, but De Laurentiis knew with Mazzarri he had something good in the works. The Partenopei got rid of players that didn’t find room with Mazzarri like Cigarini and Hoffer, and even though they were quiet on the transfer market, they pulled off a big coup, bringing in striker Edinson Cavani. Cavani and Lavezzi will be a scary pairing for opposing defenses. Cristiano Lucarelli was brought in to warm the bench in a move I really didn’t understand. A surprise could be Argentinian midfielder Jose Ernesto Sosa, signed from Bayern Munich. Sosa is a Lavezzi-type player and he could be a pleasant surprise for Napoli fans. In the defensive side of things, Fabiano Santacroce is finally healthy after a season of injury. Santacroce has always been considered very promising, and maybe he can shine this season. News today was that Fabio Quagliarella will be leaving for Juventus on loan, it should be official tomorrow. If he does go, maybe Napoli are clearing up space to bring in one more big signing. Anything can happen. If Napoli can handle the burden of two competitions they can have their say this season.

Palermo

Palermo are coming off a great season, just narrowly missing out on a place in the Champions League. Palermo’s situation was similar to Napoli. They started with Zenga, and when he wasn’t doing too well he was sacked and replaced with Delio Rossi. Under Rossi the Rosanero became a great side, and started pushing for a Champions League. Fabrizio Miccoli had the season of his life last year, and unfortunately his injury will keep him out until late September/early October. Two players should really explode this season for Palermo: fantasista Javier Pastore and strike Abel Hernandez. Pastore didn’t start out well last season, but as the season went on and he adapted he grew and ended with a bang really playing well, even earning a call-up to the World Cup. He has been excellent in the preseason and this season he will be one to watch in Serie A. Hernandez was signed in January of 2009 very young and mostly played with Palermo’s Primavera side. But he was always on the cusp of the first team and made appearances here and there. Now, it looks like he’s ready to be a protagonist, and has showed that in the preseason. Filling out the attack, Palermo signed Siena striker Massimo Maccarone who has always been a consistent scorer in Serie A and Chilean Mauricio Pinilla, who was the second best goalscorer in Serie B last season. They also bought two promising foreign youngsters (Glik and Kasami), and 19 year old Argentinian defender Ezequiel Munoz from Boca Juniors. Palermo should challenge this season, especially if Miccoli can play like he did last season.

Parma

If Genoa hadn’t made all those signings, Parma would be my pick for best transfer campaign. They haven’t signed the biggest names, but made smart signings to improve the club and catapult them to a Europa League-caliber team. It looks like Tommaso Ghirardi finally knows how to run a football club as well as he can eat a wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano and a leg of Prosciutto di Parma in less then 10 minutes. First, Pasquale Marino is at the helm. Marino is not only tactically organized but also attack-minded, which means Parma fans will have fun this season. Marino’s sides play a quick style of play with the ball always on the ground, which leads to football that is a joy to watch. The biggest signing was without a doubt Sebastian Giovinco. After wasting away on the Juventus bench, many fans have come to the conclusion that Giovinco will never be anything special. But I say we can only judge him after this season. Giovinco will finally be a protagonist and play all the time, which should lead to a spectacular season and maybe even a national team call-up. They also signed two excellent defenders in Massimo Gobbi and Gabriel Paletta. In midfield they signed two unknown midfielders in Fernando Marques and Danilo Pereira, but they could become pleasant surprises. Their attack isn’t too shabby either, with Bojinov, Crespo, and Paloschi all hungry to impress. It should be a good year for Gialloblu fans.

Roma

Rossella Sensi finally put her beloved Roma up for sale. That’s good news for Roma fans that didn’t like her or that want an owner with lots of money. The bad news is that meant Roma couldn’t have a high-spending transfer market this summer. They had to satisfy themselves with free transfers (Adriano and Fabio Simplicio) and loans (Guillermo Burdisso and Paolo Castellini). They finally mustered u enough money for Nicolas Burdisso today with the sale of Alessio Cerci. However, what Roma do have is a group of players that have been together for years and know how to play together. Combine that with the tactical know how of Claudio Ranieri and you still have a pretty good team. Many consider Roma to be Inter’s main rivals still, and if they play the way they did in the first half of the Super Coppa they should have a good year. After two years of underachieving, it looks like Jeremy Menez is finally ready to play to his potential, which is a huge plus for the Giallorossi. They also make their return to the Champions League this season after missing out last year. Another exciting thing for Roma fans is Totti’s chase for 200 goals. If he can hit 13 in Serie A this season, he will have reached the legendary 200 Serie A goal club and only be 5 away from Roberto Baggio. I think he’s going to do it.

Sampdoria

Samp had a wondrous season last year. Nobody expected them to go on that great run in the second half of the season and qualify for the Champions League (unfortunately they were knocked out). However, gone are two big parts of that: Gigi Delneri and Beppe Marotta. Delneri found a way to use Cassano to his best ability, and motivated a group of above average players to reach an unthinkable dream. He is replaced by Mimmo Di Carlo, who showed promise at Chievo but I’m unsure how good he can be. The real loss is Marotta, who was really great at discovering talents and making deals for players (he was the one that brought Cassano to Samp). The new sporting director Sergio Gasparin hasn’t been very active, only buying Gianluca Curci as his starting goalkeeper. All their other new players were either co-owned by Samp and bought fully or brought back from loan. For this side to play good, they need their three stars (Palombo, Cassano, Pazzini) to play good. I’m also expecting a big season from midfielder Andrea Poli, who in my mind was the biggest revelation in Serie A last season. Another one to keep an eye on is fullback Massimo Volta, who played very well in the Champions League preliminary. I don’t think Samp can repeat their Champions League qualification, especially with the two competitions, but they can definitely aim for a Europa League place.

Udinese

Francesco Guidolin has returned to Udinese as manager. He was manager of Udinese in the 98/99 season. It’s up in the air with Udinese this season. They lost Simone Pepe, but that means more playing time for Alexis Sanchez, who had a good World Cup and is ready to be a protagonist. Antonio Di Natale refused a transfer to Juventus and wants to retire an Udinese player. German Denis was brought in to add some weight and power to the attack. They lost midfield maestro Gaetano D’Agostino, but he is replaced by Antonio Candreva who returns from his experience at Juventus. They also kept hold to World Cup standouts Kwadwo Asamoah and Gohkan Inler, which means their midfield is still strong. Udinese have a good team and a good manager and can surprise, but if the players that are looking for a move away have no motivation this could be a disappointing season in Friuli. I think they will have a tranquil season though.

The SuperCoppa is this weekend and that means one thing: Serie A is a little over a week away! Although the transfer market hasn’t been very eventful, clubs have still made moves to improve their squads. So I thought it would be good to see what your starting eleven your favorite club could put out on the first day of the season. This isn’t definite at all because of injuries, coaching decisions, and other factors, but it gives you a good idea of what you can expect. Also, I think the only team that will put out a starting eleven with all players from last season is Cagliari (although they have a new manager in Pierpaolo Bisoli). So let’s go through the 20 sides:

(New signings or managers in Bold)

Bari (4-4-2): Gillet; Raggi, A.Masiello, M.Rossi, S.Masiello; Alvarez, Donati, Almiron, Pulzetti; Barreto, Ghezzal. All.: Ventura.

Bologna (4-4-2): Viviano; Garics, Portanova, Britos, Morleo; Buscè, Mudingayi, Krhin, Ekdal; Di Vaio, Meggiorini. All.: Colomba.

Brescia (3-5-2): Sereni; Martinez, Bega, Mareco; Zambelli, Vass, Budel, Baiocco, Dallamano; Possanzini, Carracciolo. All.: Iachini.

Cagliari (4-3-1-2): Marchetti; Pisano, Canini, Astori, Agostini; Biondini, Conti, Lazzari; Cossu; Matri, Jeda. All.: Bisoli.

Catania (4-4-2): Andujar; Potenza, Silvestre, Spolli, Capuano; Izco, Ledesma, Bigianti, Gomez; Maxi Lopez, Mascara. All.: Giampaolo.

Cesena (4-4-2): Antonioli; Petras, Von Bergen, Pellegrino, Nagatomo; Schelotto, Colucci, Caserta, Giaccherini; Do Prado, Bogdani. All.: Ficcadenti.

Chievo (4-3-1-2): Sorrentino; Frey, Morero, Cesar, Mantovani; Luciano, Rigoni, Marcolini; Bogliacino; Moscardelli, Pellissier. All.: Pioli.

Fiorentina (4-2-3-1): Frey; De Silvestri, Gamberini, Felipe, Pasqual; Montolivo, D’Agostino; Marchionni, Ljajic, Vargas; Gilardino. All.: Mihajlovic.

Genoa (3-4-3): Eduardo; Ranocchia, Dainelli, Bocchetti; Rossi, Zuculini, Veloso, Criscito; Palladino, Palacio, Toni. All.: Gasperini.

Inter (4-2-3-1): Julio Cesar; Maicon, Lucio, Samuel, Zanetti; Cambiasso, Thiago Motta; Eto’o, Sneijder, Coutinho; Milito. All.: Benitez.

Juventus (4-4-2): Storari; Motta, Bonucci, Chiellini, De Ceglie; Pepe, Sissoko, Felipe Melo, Marchisio; Diego, Amauri. All.: Delneri.

Lazio (3-5-2): Muslera, Biava, Dias, Radu; Lichtsteiner, Brocchi, Ledesma, Hernanes, Garrido; Floccari, Rocchi. All.: Reja.

Lecce (4-3-3): Rosati; Donati, Reginiussen, Gustavo, Brivio; Munari, Giacomazzi, Grossmuller; Olivera, Piatti, Corvia. All.: De Canio.

Milan (4-3-3): Amelia; Zambrotta, Thiago Silva, Nesta, Antonini; Ambrosini, Pirlo, Boateng; Pato, Borriello, Ronaldinho. All.: Allegri.

Napoli (3-4-2-1): De Sanctis; Santacroce, Cannavaro, Campagnaro; Maggio, Gargano, Hamsik, Dossena; Lavezzi, Quagliarella; Cavani. All.: Mazzarri.

Palermo (4-3-1-2): Sirigu; Cassani, Munoz, Bovo, Balzaretti; Migliaccio,Liverani, Nocerino; Pastore; Hernandez, Miccoli. All.: Rossi.

Parma (4-4-1-1): Mirante; Zaccardo, Lucarelli, Paletta, Antonelli; Valiani, Dzemaili, Morrone, Galloppa; Giovinco; Bojinov. All.: Marino.

Roma (4-3-1-2): Julio Sergio; Cassetti, Mexes, Juan, Riise; Taddei, De Rossi, Pizarro; Menez; Totti, Adriano. All.: Ranieri.

Sampdoria (4-4-2): Curci; Stankevicius, Gastaldello, Lucchini, Ziegler; Semioli, Palombo, Poli, Guberti; Pazzini, A. Cassano. All.: Di Carlo.

Udinese (4-3-3): Handanovic; Isla, Zapata, Domizzi, Pasquale; Candreva, Inler, Asamoah; Sanchez, Di Natale, Denis. All.: Guidolin.

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The 2010/2011 Serie A season seemed so far away and it felt like 2009/2010 just ended, but the new season is upon us. With today’s calendar drawing, it officially means the season is upon us. Tomorrow will be officially one month until kickoff. The season will run from August 29th to May 22nd. The first day of the season doesn’t have any big teams squaring off, but it has some interesting encounters. The big teams will be happy with their opponents. Here is the first matchday: Bari-Juventus; Chievo-Catania; Milan-Lecce; Parma-Brescia; Roma-Cesena; Sampdoria-Lazio; Udinese-Genoa; Palermo-Cagliari; Bologna-Inter; Fiorentina-Napoli. Inter will start their title defense on Monday, since they will be involved in the European Super Cup with Atletico Madrid on August 27th. The best game looks to be Fiorentina-Napoli, a battle between two teams looking to aim high. Other good games are Sampdoria-Lazio and Bari-Juventus (especially if Giovinco goes to Bari).

And now some notable games: Roma-Inter will take place on September 26th at the Olimpico in the 5th round. The following week, Inter host Juve at the San Siro on October 3rd. Milan-Juve will take place in the 9th round on October 31st. December 19th brings about a great day of action: Milan-Roma, Fiorentina-Inter, and Sampdoria-Genoa derby.

Speaking of derbies, the first one of the season will be Lazio-Roma on November 7th, and then two weeks later on November 14th will be Inter-Milan. Sampdoria-Genoa will be on December 19th as I said above, and the Puglia derby of Lecce-Bari is back in Serie A for the first time since 2001 and will take place on January 6th.

There are three midweek rounds: September 22nd, November 10th, and February 2nd.

There will be the traditional round played on the epiphany (January 6th) after the winter break but it may not happen because the player’s association is saying they would like a longer winter break. They said they are willing to move the January 6th round to a midweek round right before Christmas to have a longer break. Apparently a petition will be signed by players and presented to the Lega.

Prandelli’s Nazionale has Euro 2012 qualifying and therefore there will be 3 national team breaks throughout the season: September 5th, October 10th, and March 27th.

For a nice interactive full Serie A 2010/2011 calendar, click here.

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Even though his agent Mino Raiola says nothing has been signed yet, Mario Balotelli will definitely be a Manchester City player by the end of the week. The soon to be 20 year old left with Inter for their USA tour (where they will play Manchester City in a friendly on Saturday) just to make it not obvious that he’s leaving. In the training sessions in the USA so far, the team has been working with the ball while Balotelli has been training alone in the gym and the pool. Balotelli will reunite with Roberto Mancini, who introduced Balotelli to Serie A two years ago. Love him or hate him, you have to acknowledge that Balotelli is a talent and personally I hope he fixes his head so he can finally realize his potential and become a star for Italy (especially at a time when Italy needs young talents). Am I hopeful? Not really. Balotelli is nuts. More news after the jump.

-Tomorrow the Serie A calendar will be unveiled. The same format will be used as last season (no seeding system) so it’s possible that the big teams could meet on the first day. Also the game times are a little different this season. Any team involved in a Champions League match during the week will play on Friday. Saturday stays the same with two games, one anticipo at 6 PM and a posticipo at 8:45. Sundays have changed. There will be a lunch time game like the EPL has at 12:30 pm (meaning earlier wake up times for US fans watching calcio, which stinks), followed by the other teams playing at the normal 3 PM and then the posticipo at 8:45 pm. The Lega will also experiment with a Monday night game like the EPL has, and the experiment will be used only 6 or 7 times this season. When a Monday night game is to be played, it will be the Saturday 6 PM anticipo which will be moved to the Monday slot. I don’t like this new schedule. Why did they have to change a good thing. They complain about Italian attendance records, yet they now expect people to forget about lunch on Sunday and go to a soccer game instead. Never get between Italians and food!

-Looks like Italy goalkeeper Federico Marchetti and Cagliari have decided to go their separate ways. While it’s always been known that Marchetti has had many clubs interested in him, it always looked like he would stay in Sardegna. However Cagliari owner Massimo Cellino didn’t like an interview Marchetti gave to Gazzetta dello Sport where he said he was open to leave. Cellino said Marchetti should have talked to him first. So, Cagliari have officially announced that Marchetti is on the market, and if he leaves, the starting goalkeeper will be Michele Agazzi and not Chievo goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino as some media outlets reported. For Marchetti, the most viable option right now looks like a move to England, seeing as most Italian sides have already taken care of their goalkeeping situation.

-Wondering why Sampdoria’s transfer campaign has pretty much sucked so far? Well sporting director Sergio Gasparin said their mercato depends on what happens with the Champions League qualifier. Pretty stupid, because if Samp do qualify for the Champions League group stage, that will occur on August 25th, allowing Gasparin only 6 days to to find some players before the mercato closes on the 31st.

-Gianluca Zambrotta is an optimist I guess. He says that Milan even without a few other signings is competitive already. I don’t know Zambrotta, when your entire midfield is over 30 it’s pretty hard to be competitive…

-Parma sporting director Pietro Leonardi has come out and said that Parma looking for a player with fantasista qualities. He said that Sebastian Giovinco, Hatem Ben Arfa, and Alessandro Diamanti all fit the bill and Parma is looking to get one of the three.

-Speaking of Giovinco, it was reported today that Bari has surpassed Parma and is now in pole position to get Giovinco. I don’t know how true that is, especially since Bari owner Vincenzo Matarrese came out today and said they will only sing Giovinco on loan and nothing else. They don’t want to pay money for him.

-Fiorentina will apparently close the deal with Liverpool to bring fullback Emiliano Insua to Florence before the end of the day. Let’s see if that happens.

-Eder, dubbed the “Kaka of Serie B”, was Serie B’s top goalscorer last season and is looking for a move to a bigger club. According to reports Lazio and Empoli have been discussing a deal for weeks and apparently it is very close to being done. Lotito has to spend those 18 million euro he got for Kolarov on something…

-Inter are looking to use the money received from the Balotelli sale (and maybe eventually Maicon’s) to bring in two of Bentiez’s pupils: Mascherano and Kuyt. While it is almost fairly certain that Mascherano will be joining the Nerazzurri this summer, the Kuyt deal will be a little more complicated, but could be made easier if Liverpool wind up singing Royston Drenthe.

-Roma really want West Ham and Switzerland winger Valon Behrami. They apparently want him on loan with an option to buy, but West Ham isn’t interested in that type of deal. So Roma may have to give the London club some players, and they might decide to hand over Brazilian goalkeeper Doni and young Italian striker Stefano Okaka, who spent the second part of last season in London on loan with Fulham. I wonder how the Roma fans will react to an ex-Laziale playing for them.

-Luca Cigarini was once touted as the new Pirlo, but hasn’t really lived up to the billing. Napoli spent a load of money on him last summer but once Mazzarri showed up he decided there was no room for Ciga in his starting 11. So Cigarini wants to move on, and Sevilla are rumored to be interested (where he would form an all-Italian central midfield pairing with Tiberio Guarente, and the two played together at Atalanta). Sevilla have supposedly put in an offer that is deemed too low for Napoli: 300,000 euro for the loan and then the option to buy for 6 million at the end of the season.

-Newly-promoted Brescia have done next to nothing on the transfer market, only signing goalkeeper Matteo Sereni so far. Manager Beppe Iachini announced to the press today that for Brescia to achieve salvation the squad needs some reinforcements. Brescia are looking at bringing in West Ham’s Alessandro Diamanti. That would be a great move, but I don’t know if Diamanti would accept a move to relegation zone team.

-Mauro Camoranesi has been linked with a move away from Juve since May. First it was thought he would go to Olympiakos, but the Greek club couldn’t finalize the deal. Now it seems newly-promoted La Liga side Hercules CF is interested in the Italo-Argentine, and they are willing to offer him two year deal worth 1.5 million euro a season.

-And finally, Nicolas Burdisso. The Argentinian defender desperately wants a permanent move to Roma, but the Giallorossi really don’t have that much money to spend. In addition, after Totti’s words to the press about Inter, they are not going to be the easiest to negotiate with. It’s almost a month until the start of the Serie A season, and Burdisso’s future is still unclear.