May the Real Napoli please Stand Up!

Will Napoli be the Real Deal this season or the Real mistake.

Out with the old and in with the new. That is a saying that is probably being heard quite often these days in and around the SSC Napoli clubhouse. The Naples side have parted ways with superstar striker Edinson Cavani and charismatic coach Walter Mazzarri. Since they have brought in controversial Rafa Benitez who immediately acquired an interesting mix of dynamic young players creating quite a buzz of excitement around the Stadio San Paolo despite the loss of their most prolific attacker in Napoli's rich history.

 

Something about the air in Paris makes Cavani look more presentable

The ambition of last year's Scudetto runner-up is apparent and the gung-ho manner of their transfer campaign has seemed to throw off the balance in the Serie A transfer market...but unfortunately their efforts may all be in vain.

Mazzarri to DeLaurentis "F*** this, I'm out!"

Fact is Napoli has already been on a slight decline ever since they sold Ezequiel Lavezzi to PSG last summer and Walter Mazzarri obviously knew this. Napoli ran out of gas in their Scudetto pursuit this past season and with Cavani set to leave, Mazzarri jumped ship because he believes Napoli are a sputtering ship and it will take one hell of an effort to keep it from sinking...so Walter tucked his tail and ran to the one team that can only go up from the position they currently are in.

DeLaurentis is like "no fear, Rafa is here"

Rafa Benitez has now flung himself into another seemingly impossible position (despite the large transfer $$$ given to him), where expectation will be high for the southern Italian side to mount a serious run at the Serie A title despite the fact Napoli are about to go through a HUGE transitional season.

This fact however has been masked by the interesting transfer campaign that has been undertaken by Rafa. The former Liverpool boss has signed an exciting young Belgianattacker in Dries Mertens and a host of Real Madrid 'misfits', most eyebrow raising, the reported 42Million signing of Gonzalo Higuain.....WHAT....yes that’s right...Napoli has spent two-thirds of the Cavani fund on a striker who, albeit one who may play with a chip on his shoulder this season...in my opinion, has failed to really impress as a top class striker. They were way better off with Cavani compared to him.

thousands of Napoli fans assaulted Gonzalo like he was the Biebs

His goal tally aside, Higuain was always second choice to the likes of Benzema and before him Raul and Van Nistelrooy...and I'm sure there is a reason for that. Higuain has those Inzaghi like abilities of being inthe right place at the right time and being a close range clinical finisher...but he does not possess boatloads of technical ability, does not have the power and presence that his Partenopei predecessor Cavani had...Higuain's skill set matches many other available Serie A strikers...one name that comes to mind is Alessandro Matri...a player who is of not that much less quality than Higuain and one who would probably been allowed to leave Juventus, even to arch-rivals Napoli, on the cheap since they have now found themselves with a glut of strikers...but instead Napoli have forked over 42mil for ONE striker and still have plenty of holes to fill.

Their defence remains a biq question mark with the likes of Gamberini,  Paolo Cannavaro and the newly acquired Raul Albiol hardly being able to instill fear in the eyes of Europe's greatest attacking forces. Their midfield lacks dynamism and creativity...and then there is the coach himself…. Benitez…no doubt a great tactician... but one who gets very set in his ways and ruffles the feathers of his employers...just ask Massimo Moratti. Formation changes, style changes, personnel changes will all be on the cards for Napoli this season. Switching from a very Italian-style 3-4-3 counterattacking system to Rafa’s for 4-2-3-1 will be a major transition that current players will have initial difficulty in adjusting to. And any new acquisitions will need some time to gel.

I'm not saying that Napoli will be a disaster this season, but talk of potential Scudetto champions is definitely premature, if not naïve. It seems as though management is just trying to overhype a team in transition and is rushing to create a fresh, attractive team    filled with nothing but names. In a way Napoli kind of reminds me of a certain Toronto baseball team who had all the hype surrounding them after somebig name offseason acquisitions, but unfortunately was never able to put the talent and potential together on the field.

If Napoli fans have Scudetto dreams then they are in for a big disappointment this season.

the irony of Napoli's second jersey being military fatigues, considering it's going to
be a battle for them to achieve even second place this season.

Juve's Bad Investments

In recent years the Juventus have had trouble in the transfer seasons. It has not been due to a lack of finances, although with the new stadium they have moved to another level financially. They won't compete with the PSG's and Manchester City's, but they clearly have more disposable income.

This is good news for Bianconeri fans, but still they will have to be more diligent when selling players in the future. What sparked this idea was the sale of Milos Krasic for €7 million to Fenerbahce, and the inevitable loan of Felipe Melo yet again to Galatasaray. With the eventual implementation of the UEFA financial fair play, the selling of players is going to be just as important to a team as buying will be.

Milos Krasic was bought for €15 million in the summer of 2010. As most Juventini will tell you he was fantastic to begin his Bianconeri career, but struggled with fitness toward the end of that first season and seemed to lose a step as the year dragged on. The arrival of Antonio Conte was the beginning of the end for Milos at Juventus. He was completely phased out of the squad and was not even used as a substitute for most of the season. He only made 9 appearances during the 2011-12 season. It's surprising that Juventus were still able to sell him, but with his impressive pre-season this summer prior to being sold every fan wondered if he that magic he brought to the table at the start of his Serie A career was coming back. We'll never know.

Eljero Elia is another name that comes to mind, he arrived at Juventus last summer for €9 million. He made a grand total of four appearances before being shipped out this summer for €5.5 million. Why buy him in the first place?

The list goes beyond Krasic and Elia of course. Since the re-birth into Serie A Juventus have struggled mightily with transfers. Spending large fees on players that have not panned out. Felipe Melo(€25m), Diego(€27m), Tiago Mendes(€13m), Sergio Almiron(€9m), Jorge Martinez (€12m), and worst of all Amauri(€22.6) and trust me on this I could name more.

The return to Serie A saw the core of Alessandro Del Piero, Pavel Nedved, David Trezeguet, and Gianluigi Buffon still carry the team to Champions League qualification in their first two seasons back up. But beyond that the new blood was needed to carry the team to the next level, it wasn't until this season that Giuseppe Marrotta was able to figure it out with players like Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo being brought in. However we still are seeing the same problem, an inability to sell players at a profit.

Amauri, Tiago, Martinez and Melo have all brought back very little return in terms of performance and monetary value to the club and this cannot continue if the Old Lady is to continue on atop the Serie A. Most of them were only given a handful of opportunities to really succeed with the club, so it begs the question why bother? Especially with players like Martinez.

Alessandro Matri, Fabio Quagliarella, and Reto Ziegler are three players that remain on the selling block. I'm not sure why Matri would be, he seemed to fit in well with the Bianconeri's plans and had a decent scoring record before struggling through the end of last season with a knee injury. They spent €20m on him and now are reportedly looking to fetch €12m on the market for him only to use it on another striker. You always want to be buying low and selling high, something Marrotta does not seem to do well. Ziegler was brought in on a free, but was loaned out immediately and now they are struggling to get rid of him. While Quagliarella is having an awful pre-season after not featuring in the squad for much of last season, so what can they really get for him?

What troubles me the most is the continuing talk of Robin Van Persie being atop their priority list. He is a great talent I will admit, but I do have my doubts about his overall game. I'm not sure it will translate well to the Serie A, and I find it hard to remember when RVP has pulled out great performances when facing the top teams around Europe. But I could rant all day about that, the thing is that he is just turned 29, and is coming off the first injury free season of his career. His contract is going to expire with Arsenal next season at which point I would have no problem signing him as a thirty year old on a free transfer. But Arsenal is smart they know he is in high demand because of the great season he is coming off, and since three teams have let it be known they are strongly interested in him(Juventus, Man U, and Man City) they will let the bidding war ensue. Squeezing as much money as possible out of their star player.

I am warning Juventus fans Robin Van Persie may not end up being all he's cracked up to be. The Bianconeri went down the same road with Amauri a few years ago and we see how that turned out. Buying strikers when they are at their peak is never a good idea. I will grant you Van Persie is ten times the player Amauri was, but it's the same type of deal buying when their value is peaked and they are about to hit the down slope of their career.

Robin Van Persie would be yet another bad investment for Juventus.

Best in the World

Is the Serie A the best league in the world? The answer right now is no, but as we saw from the Euro's Italy are still no slouches despite the reputation of the league and National side taking a hit in recent years. I for one have always enjoyed the Serie A more than any other league, sure I have a rooting interest for Juventus but as a casual soccer fan I would still rather watch any Serie A game more than another league.

But I also think that the Serie A is back on the rise again. It is unfortunate that the Serie A lost our coveted fourth Champions League spot, but if things fall the right way this season that spot could belong to an Italian team once again, and if you think about it that spot could be filled with a very competitive team.

I have shared my views on Roma and Napoli's transfer seasons thus far, and I think we can all agree, both teams have made some impressive strides in the right direction. Inter has also made some important moves this summer, Coutinho seems like a different player since spending a year on loan  while head coach Andrea Strammaccioni has stressed a hard work ethic since taking over late last season. Milan have had their struggles, and those have been very well documented this summer, but I still maintain that cashing in on Ibrahimovic and Silva was the right thing to do for the Rossoneri. That was a move for the long-term that will benefit them in a big way. Udinese have sold away virtually everyone that made them so great last season besides Antonio Di Natale and Pablo Armero, however Armero may be on his way to Juventus in the coming days. Juventus have strengthened the squad big time, and are still looking for more, even beyond Armero, Van Persie or Edin Dzeko remain possibilites, while a defender is also desired by the Bianconeri brass. That leaves Lazio to round out the top seven, and they were great last season until a run of injuries killed a squad that already lacked depth.

Thats seven teams that could all compete for the Serie A this season. We can all agree that Lazio and Udinese are probably the weakest of the two, but I am here to make the argument that it is no longer a three team race in this league. Juventus will NOT be undefeated again this year. That isn't a very bold statement, as there aren't too many teams that have enjoyed consecutive 'invincable' seasons.

I have spoken to it before how upsetting it is that Udinese will probably go a second consecutive year where they stand very little chance of advance from their Champions League qualifier as they just sell away too many players, and do not re-enforce in time for the qualifier. But there is always a chance, Guidolin has that team working hard and they are never easy to beat, especially at the Stadio Friuli. But this hurts Italy's chances of getting that fourth Champions League spot back.

But we won't be held out for long, Napoli and Roma are building squads that will compete for a very long time, and squads that will have enough depth to compete in all competitions. Napoli got a rude awakening last season when they struggled with the added games of the Champions League. So they sold Ezequiel Lavezzi and have revamped with a much deeper, balanced squad. One that will challenge for a Serie A title, and one the will compete hard for continental glory as well.

Roma are in the same boat. They brought in the perfect coach for their young squad that is developing into one of the most exciting teams to watch in all of football. Seriously, if you watched some their games last season, and how talented some of these guys are, then you know what they can can do in the final third of the pitch. If not, I suggest you find a Roma game to watch this upcoming season, they will be a lot of fun.

Inter and Milan will always be around, and they will always field great teams. They may go through transition seasons every now and again, but most teams do, we've even seen it happen with Chelsea in recent seasons. But Inter are looking to get back on the map and Milan will be gunning to prove that they will still be a great team despite the sale of their two superstars, and many of their older players riding off into the sunset.


Juventus is a team on a mission at the moment. The mission is to get the credit and reputation they once had restored. An undefeated season did help but now more trouble and betting scandals are looming. However, the team had nothing to do with it, and the plan still goes on as it was drawn out. They are aiming for a lengthy run in the Champions League while retaining the Serie A title. However, it will not be as easy as they made it seem last season.


The Serie A is a league that is growing, and trying to restore its name and reputation around the world. I believe in it, and I am happy to see that the owners of Napoli and Roma are making a real effort to compete with the 'big three' and beyond. The league will not be a two horse race this season. There will be plenty of scoreboard watching and it will not be long until we see Italian squads dominating throughout Europe once again.

Your thoughts and opinions are always encouraged.

Follow me on Twitter @DanRiccio23 for all the latest Serie A news and updates on the blog!

WOPS - WITHOUT OUR PLAYERS

Guest Blog

By Alex Bartolomeo

There seems to be a trend developing in the Serie A if we look at recent transfer windows, but it is nothing new for calcio fans. The young talents of Italy have been shipped off or sold to the highest bidder. It seems that young Italians are finding it hard to make there way into a starting XI in the Serie A, and if they do owners seem reluctant to sell their rising stars within the Serie A for fear of that competition. What is most troubling about all of this is that players get sold away to other countries and are forgotten. Taken out of the National Pool before even getting a chance in most cases.

In recent weeks we have seen Fabio Borini and Marco Verratti both leave the Serie A for England and Italy respectively. This is not the first time we have seen this happen, and most certainly will not be the last. I think we would all like to see these players reach their potential before being shipped elsewhere.

Here are some examples of what could have been:

Alessandro Rosina (right) shakes hands with Alessandro Del Piero prior to a Torino derby match.

Rosina was captain of Torino at the time. (2008)

Known as Rosinaldo in Torino for resembling the great 'Phenomeno' Ronaldo. Rosina started his career with Parma at just 20-years-old. Hopes were high for this young man however, he never did truly break out with the Gialloblu. He moved on in the summer of 2006 to Torino where he finally began fulfilling his potential. During his three seasons with Torino he ammased 22 goals and 10 assists. Despite interest from clubs all over the Serie A, it was Zenit St. Petersburg who won the race for his signature. Rosina was 25 and just entering the prime of his career, however since moving to the Russian side he has never cemented his place in the first team. He earned his first cap for the Azzurri during the 2007-08 season, but has yet to earn a second cap since moving to Zenit.

Enzo Maresca after winning the UEFA Cup with Sevilla

An Italian bull that started his career at the age of eleven with AC Milan. A box-to-box central midfielder that made his first senior appearance at the age of 18 with West Bromwich Albion of the English Premiere League. He quickly became a highly touted young player from there. Juventus purchased him in 2000 to bring him back to Italy however, he was never given a proper opportunity. Lack of first team football at Juventus to a loan spell at Bologna and co-ownership deals to Piacenza and Fiorentina respectively. In that 2004-2005 season Enzo played well, finding the back of the net five times in just 25 appearances. As a midfielder, that is a very good scoring record. Despite showing promise Juventus bought his full rights back from Fiorentina in 2005 and sent him to Sevilla, where he would go on to win the UEFA cup. Enzo netted twice in the final and was awarded man of the match honours. However, Enzo was never given an opportunity with the national team.

Alberto Aquilani

Being born in Rome, he began his training as a 15-year-old with the Giallorossi and became known as 'The Prince'. Roma fans believe he would be the one to replace Francesco Totti. This put a lot of pressure on the young midfielder, and he was not able to live up to the immense hype. Alberto was only given a short stin at the senior level with Roma, and was plagued by injuries. However, a team abroad still believed in his talent. He was sold to Anfield where he would play with Liverpool in the English Premiere League. Injuries have never allowed him a chance at the first team. He has only been called to one major tournament (Euro08) and since has not made it to the World Cup in 2010 or the recent Euro 2012. Alberto has spent his last two seasons in Italy, but only on a loan basis. He is still looking for a permanent move back to his home country.

Federico Macheda

At 14 Federico was already set to become a star. He got noticed by Sir Alex and was taken to the Premiere League. Never having really gotten an opportunity with the first team, Macheda's growth seems to have stunted. He is no longer one of the top Italian talents, and although he is still 21-years-old has fallen behind as guys like Fabio Borini and Mattia Destro are much further ahead in their development.

Marco Verratti

Touted as the second coming of Andrea Pirlo despite having never played a minute of Serie A football, Marco Verratti is Italy's most promising young talent at the moment. He led Pescara to promotion from Serie B this past season and made the big money move to PSG. Juventus was set to close a deal on the youngster until Pescara got a more than generous offer from the Parisian giants. The ceiling is high for Marco, but he needs to play in order to reach his immense potential. I don't think he will get that chance at PSG, it will be unfortunate if he does not continue to grow as a man and as a player because of this move.

It is not always what it is cracked up to be, leaving for the big money contracts in Russia or wherever a young star may find it. This is not a problem subject to Italians alone, but a problem that seems to be more prevalent in recent years. The blame should not just go on the players, although the allure of high reputation teams coupled with a big contract is hard to refuse, the owners in Italy need to nurture this talent better than they have in recent years. There is a bigger picture here, growing the game in Italy should benefit every team financially, not just the bigger clubs. Rising stars need to be given opportunities, and real opportunities at that, not just a few appearances here and there.

The problem is not as large as I might make it out to be, I know that but Italy should be a league that competes with the English and Spanish and at this rate it is starting to feel like it has become a feeder league for them. Mario Balotelli, Marco Verratti, and Fabio Borini should be the stars of football playing with Italian teams, not teams from around the globe. These are the types of players that can restore the great reputation the Serie A once had. Yes we may not be losing all of our best young talent, but in recent years the few that are leaving are the really special ones, and that is what scares me the most.

Serie A Canada Latest

The latest transfer rumours in the Serie A.

Juventus left back Reto Ziegler does not seem to figure in the Bianconeri's plans. A move to La Liga seems unlikely as Valencia and Sevilla have dropped out of talks for him. Lokomotiv and CSKA Moscow however have begun tracking him, and are in talks with the players agent/father Rene Ziegler.

They have also closed down talks with Brescia starlet Omar El Khaddouri, a move to the Premiere League is now possible for the young Moroccan who will be showcased in the Olympics.

Sticking with Juventus, Milos Krasic played as a sub in the friendly against Hertha Berlin and scored. He may now have an opportunity in the first team with a possible suspension hanging over Simone Pepe. However, any decent offer for the player would still be accepted at this point.

Bruno Alves is close to a Juventus move, the club are still looking at other options though. Rumours of Salvatore Bocchetti are gaining steam, especially now that Bonucci will likely miss the entire season on a suspension. Bocchetti's contract with Rubin Kazan ends in 2013, a loan deal with option to buy at the end seems likely.

Inter continue to track Lucas Moura from Sao Paulo. It will take at least 30 million Euro for the player, but he has said his future will not be decided until after the Olympics. Manchester United are still in the lead for his signature.

Rumours continue to swirl around Milan. Replacements are needed and the club are looking at everything. Kaka remains a possibility while Catania midfielder Lodi says he is proud to be a Catania player and has no problems staying there. He has recently been linked to the Rossoneri.

Milan continue to look in France for defenders. N'Koulou Nicolas is the latest name to be linked with the club. The Marseille defender is 22 years old and has tonnes of potential. However, he would count as a non-EU player as he is Cameroonian. They should continue to look in Italy for defenders. Angelo Ogbonna anyone?

Napoli have given standout pre-season performer Lorenzo Insigne a contract extension. It runs until 2017.

They are also druelling at the prospects of signing Guiseppe Rossi. However if that deal won't materialize Giampaolo Pazzini, Sergio Floccari and Rolando Bianchi would be other options.

Euro 2012 standout Federico Balzaretti has many admirers, and a move out of Palermo is imminent. The Rosaneri have accepted bids from Roma and Napoli so his future is now in his own hands. His wife would like him to stay in Palermo or move to PSG. Juventus are looking to hijack this deal as well.

Fiorentina are tracking Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani. It seems he would like a move back to Italy but nothing is imminent. Something may happen in the next week or so as Liverpool manager Brendan Rogers tries to figure out if Aquilani will be in his plans for the Reds.

Inter are beginning to look for alternatives to Lucas Moura. Although their hope is still high for the Brazilian, they have looked to Germany for midfield talent. Mario Gotze of Borussia Dortmund as well as Thomas Muller of Bayern Munich. Muller seems likely as he would like more guaranteed playing time than he has been getting in Munich.

Roma has finally made the signing of Mattia Destro official. It's clear now why it took so long, very complicated deal. He moves to the Giallorossi on loan for 11.5m Euro with an option to purchase outright at the end of the year for an extra 4.5. This will obviously happen because it makes no sense to pay 11.5m Euro for a loan, and then throw the player back. Giammario Piscitella and Valerio Verre have gone to Genoa as part of co-ownership deals as well, while Verre will be loaned to Siena. Add it all up you get a 19m Euro deal for Mattia Destro.

Genoa wanted as much money as they could get right away to bring in some re-inforcements. The first two names that have popped up in rumour talks are Milos Krasic from Juventus and Alessio Cerci from Fiorentina. The Rossoblu would like both in a perfect world.

Three teams are hunting Atalanta's Federico Peluso. Juventus, who have been tracking him for quite sometime, Lazio, and Palermo who will soon be searching for a Balzaretti replacement.

Pescara continue to look for new attacking options since losing Veratti, Insigne and Immobile. The three men that won them promotion from Serie B. Emmanuele Calaio is one of the names at the top of their list.

Torino have terminated the contract of Damiano Ferronetti.

Chievo are looking at bringing Valeri Bojinov back to the Serie A. He is currently playing for Sporting Lisbon.

Luc Castaignos made his move from Inter to FC Twente official today. He lashed out at the club saying although he learned a lot during his time in Milan, he had more faith in himself than the team had in him. He's only 19 he can still become a great player. The ceiling is very, very high on this kid.

Udinese, looking for Samir Handanovic replacement, are thinking about bringing former Juventus keeper Alex Manninger into the mix.

Juventus have made the signing of Pablo Armero one of their top priorities. They are thought to want three more players before the window closes. A defender, a striker and left wing. Armero would be that left winger.

That's it for today surely the silly season will have much more tomorrow.
Follow me on twitter @DanRiccio23 for all the very latest transfer news in the Italian Serie A.