To say that this Serie A weekend witnessed some exciting action would be a major understatement. With 33 goals scored across the board, FOUR encounters ending 3-2 and some fabulous scorchers here and there, picking the best displays of the matchday won’t be an easy task. Nevertheless, we’ll try our recap to recap the mesmerizing action as best as we can while acknowledging the standout performers from Serie A Round 6 in this special edition of the Tops and Flops.
Top (Player): Patrick Cutrone
While football fans love nothing more than an underdog story, Como’s rise from the lower divisions to Serie A hasn’t been as magical as some would like to paint it. The Lombardians have probably the richest owners among all Italian clubs and also rely on a foreign manager and assembled a band of waning foreign stars who are arguably more interested in the paycheck rather than the cause.
Nevertheless, the club does have one local hero that the fanbase can associate with, and his name is Patrick Cutrone.
The 26-year-old is a youth product of Milan who rose to prominence at a young age in 2018 before quickly vanishing. He then endured forgettable spells with Fiorentina and Wolves before signing for his hometown club in 2022.
The Italian striker had always given his all on the pitch, so it’s no surprise to see him leave it all out while proudly representing his people.
On Sunday, Cutrone scored a formidable brace to lead Como towards their second victory in a row, this time at the expense of Verona.
Hence, this story is too good to be overlooked, so the Lariani hero is our Top Player of the week.
Flop (Player): Jhon Lucumi
After taking the lead through another lovely Santiago Castro strike, Bologna could have gone on to register their first win at home this season, but Jhon Lucumi impeded his team’s chances with a very costly error.
The defender allowed himself to be dispossessed while trying to build from the back, and then had to drag down Charles De Ketelaere, giving Atalanta a numerical advantage for the majority of the second half. La Dea ended up grabbing an equalizer late in the match despite the Rossoblu’s valiant efforts.
The Colombian remains a reliable centre-back, but he lands in this spot for one major blunder.
Top (Manager): Antonio Conte
After Udinese and Torino, Napoli now find themselves on top of the table, and based on the quality they possess between the squad and the managerial staff, one might tip them to cling to the top spot at least longer than the previous two league leaders.
While Matteo Politano and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia inflicted damage on Monza in a routine 2-0 win at the Maradona, we must still give credit to Antonio Conte who has now decided to embrace a 4-3-3 tactical system.
The Lecce native has been accused of becoming too rigid as he stubbornly insisted on playing with a three-man defense over the past few years, but he’s now proving he’s not too old to learn new tricks by adopting a more pragmatic approach and finding a system that suits the characteristics of the players at his disposal.
Flop (Manager): Raffaele Palladino
After beating Lazio last week in controversial fashion, Raffaele Palladino was hoping to build on his maiden Fiorentina victory and launch a positive streak.
However, his team stumbled upon the first stone, settling for a goalless draw against Tuscan rivals Empoli in a contest they could have even lost.
Palladino is certainly one of the most brilliant young minds in Italian football as evidenced by his memorable Monza spell, but he must find his footing in Florence before the Purple crowds run out of patience.
Top (Team): Milan
After an abysmal start to the season, Milan are now alive and kicking under the guidance of Paulo Fonseca.
While Lecce isn’t exactly the toughest opponent, the Rossoneri are showing unity and cohesion in their play that has been sorely missing for over a year.
Perhaps it’s still too early to back them for a title charge, but the latest signs suggest the team is heading in the right direction.
We’ll be waiting for further confirmation in the Champions League contest against Bayer Leverkusen.
Flop (Team): Genoa
Genoa put up a solid effort in the first half to keep Juventus at bay. But after conceding from spot, the Grifone simply faltered.
To be fair, the absence of the raucous crowds at the Luigi Ferraris certainly didn’t help their case, but we still expected more from the usually resilient Ligurians.
Top (Goalkeeper): Lorenzo Montipò
Despite conceding three goals – which is a common trend among Serie A goalkeepers this week – the Verona custodian still pulled off three miraculous saves against Como to keep his side in the match for as long as possible.
Flop (Goalkeeper): Stefano Turati
Napoli were likely going to shrug aside Monza anyway, put they were still happy to accept Turati’s gift. The Italian shot-stopper played a poor pass down the middle which was intercepted by Zambo Anguissa, culminating in Kvara’s goal.
Top (Super-Sub): Razvan Marin
Razvan Marin’s sensational strike against Parma would have been chosen as the Top Goal on most other weekends, but let’s at least applaud the Cagliari midfielder for his instant impact upon his introduction.
Flop (Not-So-Super-Sub): Davide Bartesaghi
On the other hand, young Milan defender Davide Bartesaghi certainly didn’t impress Fonseca by getting himself sent off for a foolish two-footed tackle on Lameck Banda just five minutes after his entry.
Nonetheless, it will certainly prove to be a learning experience for the teenager, and luckily for him, his howler didn’t cause any harm to the Rossoneri who already had a three-goal cushion.
Top (Match): Parma vs Cagliari
This weekend, he had four thrillers that ended 3-2, but this one gets the nod for the end-to-end action witnessed from start to finish, as well as the brilliant goals and assists.
This season, Parma has been arguably the most entertaining side in Serie A thus far, while Cagliari historically have a knack for producing slobber knockers. Therefore, this was a match made in Calcio heaven.
In the end, the Isolani prevailed thanks to a late winner from Roberto Piccoli, earning themselves a memorable first win of the season.
Flop (Match): Empoli vs Fiorentina
While the weekend witnessed dramatic affairs all over the peninsula, the Tuscan Derby was unfortunately a letdown.
Fiorentina failed to score past the Empoli defense which has become a tough nut to crack. The Azzurri have only conceded two goals since the start of the campaign, and have yet to suffer defeat.
Not bad for a side that was a couple of minutes away from relegation last season.
Top (Comebacks): Lautaro Martinez & Dusan Vlahovic
Despite playing for arch-rivals Inter and Juventus, Lautaro Martinez and Dusan Vlahovic have some things in common. The two were the best two goal-scorers in the league last term, but have been starving for goals at the start of the new campaign.
But as they say, when it rains, it pours.
The Argentine took advantage of a clumsy finish to open his account of the season, while the Serbian ended his drought with a spot-kick.
Afterward, they both built on their revitalized self-confidence to bag lovely strikes, putting themselves back in the Capocannoniere running.
Top (Moment): Niccolò Pisilli’s Winner
For a born and bred young Roman like Pisilli, he simply couldn’t ask for a more ecstatic moment than scoring a later winner of the Stadio Olimpico to seal a come-from-behind victory.
The 20-year-old has been enjoying a meteoric rise to stardom, and the Roman sky appears to be the limit for the young midfielder.
Top (Assist): Woyo Coulibaly
Although it only proved to be a temporary equalizer, Woyo Coulibaly did fabulous work to create Dennis Man’s goal. The Parma winger stormed to the box and dribbled past his marker before picking up his Romanian teammate.
DENNIS MAN!!! 🇷🇴
Giocata straordinaria di Coulibaly per Man che mette la palla in porta! ⚽️#ParmaCagliari 1-1 pic.twitter.com/F8S73tRir9— Lega Serie A (@SerieA) September 30, 2024
Top (Goal): Saul Coco
Perhaps Marin and Lazar Samardzic’s strikes were equally deserving, but we just can’t resist acrobatic efforts, especially with a central defender acting as the unlikely author.
93' GOLAZO DI COCO! Ci crede ancora il @TorinoFC_1906 🤯#TorinoLazio 2-3 pic.twitter.com/qcH5DkC4rA
— Lega Serie A (@SerieA) September 29, 2024
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