Serie A Football In Disarray
John | Oct 10, 2011 | Comments 0
Just four games into the new season isn’t really time to judge the season end trophy winners, but any season that starts with players considering strike action is bound to affect initial preparations. Who would have thought that by the beginning of October we’d see Inter Milan down in 16th position with Roma and Milan mid table? Maybe their players spent too long in partying with blondes, buying mansions and gallivanting at the best Ski hotels Italy has to offer rather than planning for the new season.
Early leaders Juventus is the only top-four team expected to occupy their current position, so to find their heels closely followed by Udinese and Genoa is an early season surprise.
Coach Sacked After Three Games
Already this low position has cost Inter coach Gian Piero Gasperini his job. He’s been replaced by former Palma, Roma and Chelsea coach, Claudio Ranieri. This comes after just two defeats and one draw. With expectations so high, Inter couldn’t wait any longer. The new man immediately changed the team’s playing formation and saw off Bologna 3-1 with a thrilling display that must give their fans new hope.
This change of coach comes as a shock to Uruguay striker Diego Forlan. After successful spells at Villarreal and Athletico Madrid and still shaking off the three years’ disappointment at Manchester United, Forlan finds the coach and all the promises that brought him to Inter, evaporated. He scored on his debut in a defeat to Palermo. He’ll relish playing in a winning team and is still affectionately remembered for being the best player at the last World Cup finals competition in South Africa. As Forlan was purchased to replace local star Samuel Eto’o who left in the summer to join Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala, he’ll need Inter to have a quality run to maintain his early promise of superstar status.
Juventus Struggle, But Stay Top
Even the league leaders, Juventus, found beating mid table Catania, a difficult task. Requiring a second half equaliser from Krasic to share the spoils, the Italian giants will need to be more consistent if they are to be champions for the first time since 2003 following their demotion in 2006 after the match fixing scandal.
Summer Transfers Bedding In
Three of the biggest value transfers saw stars leave Italy for foreign lands. Zlatan Ibrahimovic left Milan for Barcelona while Roma lost both Erik Lamela and Pablo Osvaldo. Only two major signing stayed in Italy with Alessandro Matri leaving Juventus for Cagliari while Palermo welcomed Edinson Cavani from Napoli.
Transferring Non EU Players.
The Serie A has played around with the transfer policy of non EU players since they brought in new legislation during the 2003/04 season. They’ve tried to ensure that clubs don’t load their teams with non EU players like the English Premier League and the Spanish La Liga. The quota settled back to one player a year ago. However, most Italian clubs have maintained a majority Italian player rota which enhances the national team selection.
Cesena Focus On Loan Players
The cash flow at Cesena hasn’t helped the team’s cause this season. Their lack of funds to buy players has put their second season back in Serie A in jeopardy.
The fixtures haven’t been kind to Cesena setting them against Milan and Lazio is the two previous matches, but four straight loses shows their loan policy isn’t working. Currently five of their squad are on loan from rivals. This means paying the player’s salary, but not participating in a transfer fee.
On the reverse, Cesena have reduced their payroll by loaning out eight players with four of those at one club, Bologna, who in turn have loaned out six players to reduce their wages bill.
Bologna have been involved in a take-over of the club every year since 2008 with a steady stream of new owners. This break in continuity at the top must reflect on the club’s internal employee atmosphere. It’s often said that players aren’t affected by whoever owns the club that week, but it’s clear that clubs with several owners in a short space of time are not getting the results on the pitch that match with the loyal owners of the top teams.
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