The new chapter of Italy’s premier football competition, Serie A is set to take center stage with anticipation and excitement at an all-time high. Inter Milan will look to establish their dominance in Italian football by defending the Scudetto but the rival clubs will be eager to regain their pride and dethrone Inter from the summit of the table.
Ahead of the new season, we predicted the top 6 of Serie A.
1. Inter Milan
After a ruthless 2023-24 season, Inter Milan will again be considered as the favorites to lift their 21st Serie A title. Players like Lautaro Martinez and Nicolò Barella are in the form of their lives and much will depend on those two if Inter want to retain the Scudetto.
Inter have also strengthened the squad this summer by signing Davide Frattesi, Josep Martínez, and Carlos Augusto and have been in contact with center-backs Min-Jae Kim of Bayern Munich and Alessandro Buongiorno of Napoli to sort the issue of their aging backline.
Given the stability and the fresh faces Inter have recruited this summer, Inter will enter the 2024-25 edition of Serie A as the most stable side and will be tipped to retain the Scudetto this season.
2. Juventus
Juventus had a season to forget last season finishing third in Serie A, 23 points behind champions Inter Milan. The Old Lady has hired Thiago Motta as their new head coach. The 41-year-old led Bologna to Champions League football for the first time since 1964 winning 18 of his 37 league matches and also helped Spezia to avoid relegation in the 2021-22 season.
Juventus signed Douglas Costa from Aston Villa and Khéphren Thuram from OGC Nice and these players are tipped to thrive under Motta’s tactics of possession play and pressing the opponents when not in possession.
After a couple of difficult seasons marked by problems on and off the field, Juventus are determined to reassert their dominance in Italian football. However, knocking Inter off their perch might be too much to ask for this season for Juventus.
3. Napoli
Napoli confirmed the arrival of Antonio Conte in June on a three-year deal. Conte has a rich history in Italian football having lifted the Scudetto thrice with Juventus (2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14) and once with Inter Milan (2020-21).
Napoli had a miserable campaign last season finishing a disappointing 10th, however, their failure to qualify for European football for this season may prove to be a blessing in disguise as they can fully focus on the domestic league and try to bridge the gap to Inter. Gli Azzurri has signed Alessandro Buongiorno (CB), Rafa Marín (CB), Leonardo Spinazzola (LB), and Matija Popovic (AMF) this season.
As the new season is set to kick off, all eyes will be on Napoli to see if they can live up to their expectations and return to the upward reaches of the table.
4. Atalanta
Atalanta impressed everyone last season with their style of football which saw them qualify for the UEFA Champions League and win the UEFA Europa League beating the otherwise undefeated Bayer Leverkusen. They signed Mateo Retegui and Charles De Ketelaere this summer window and are expected to enjoy another successful season under Gian Piero Gasperini.
Playing top tier of European football may affect their league performance this season but Atalanta will be keen to establish themselves as one of the big boys in the Serie A top 4. While challenging for Scudetto may be a step too far, La Dea is expected to finish in the top 4 this season.
5. AS Roma
Roma’s previous season was full of ups and downs. After a below-par start to the season, they slowly started to find their rhythm in the latter stages of the season and finished in 6th position. This will be their first full season with Daniele De Rossi who was appointed as the new head coach in January.
Roma has signed Artem Dovbyk (CF), Matías Soulé (Right Winger), Enzo Le Fée (Central Midfield), and Angeliño (LB) and will be hopeful that the new signings will thrive under the structurally compact style of De Rossi. The Giallorossi are well aware that the competition in Serie A is fierce, but they will be confident in their ability for a top 4 finish.
However, given their involvement in the Europa League this season, Roma may face it difficult to cope with the fixture pileup and finish outside the top 4 again.
6. AC Milan
After finishing 19 points behind Inter Milan last season, AC Milan appointed former AS Roma coach Paolo Fonseca as the head coach. Fonseca made a name for himself in Italian football during his 2-year stint with AS Roma. Despite failure to win a trophy, the Portuguese bosted an impressive win average of 52% in his 102 games in charge in Italy. He then made a move to Lille FC where he won 47 out of his 90 games with a win percentage of 52.22%.
Milan have signed Emerson Royal, Álvaro Morata, Álex Jiménez, and Strahinja Pavlović this summer and will be looking for another successful domestic and European season. Having said that the rival clubs are looking much more stable going into the new season and Milan may find it difficult to breach into the top 4 in the coming season.
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Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
