The Italian transfer market has shut its doors, as the fans of calcio have discovered how their favorite teams have shaped-up for the 2020-2021 season. Although it has been an unusual transfer session sandwiched between two awkward seasons, some things remain the same, as some clubs were able to successfully strengthen their squads, others spent the last two months chasing unlikely targets. So here’s the Part One of our Serie A Transfer Ratings.
Juventus
A revolution is rarely required at a championship winning side, but the shake-up that took place during this transfer session at Juventus felt necessary, as the Bianconeri were in dire need for some fresh blood.
No much changed in defense, except for the departures of Daniele Rugani and Mattia De Sciglio towards Ligue 1 sides Rennes and Lyon respectively, but most of the action took place in midfield, as sporting director Fabio Paratici struck a brilliant deal exchanging Miralem Pjanic – who’s been on a downfall for the last two seasons – with Barcelona’s Arthur Melo.
Also, veterans Gonzalo Higuain and Blaise Matuidi terminated their contracts to join MLS side Inter Miami, and Douglas Costa rejoined European champions Bayern Munich, as two of Serie A’s brightest talents – Federico Chiesa and Dejan Kulusevski – made their big money moves Turin, with Weston McKennie bolstering the midfield and Alvaro Morata making his Juventus return after 4 years of absence.
Transfers Rating – 7/10
In the Covid-19 era, even Italy’s wealthiest side struggled to spend the money immediately, but nonetheless Juventus were able to present coach Andrea Pirlo with a much younger and dynamic squad compared to last season. Drops few points for failing to acquire a new left-Back (even though Gianluca Frabotta could turn out to be a decent player) and for being unable to lock down their main targets in attack – mainly Luis Suarez and Eden Dzeko.
Inter
Talk about a game-changing calciomercato! Inter have brilliantly strengthen their squads with the signings of veterans Aleksandar Kolarov and Arturo Vidal on very low costs, while also snatching up Ashraf Hakimi in arguably the best deal of the whole Italian transfer market.
Matteo Darmian has also joined the Nerazzurri as well as young striker Andrea Pinamonti, while Radja Nainggolan and Ivan Persic returned from their loan spells. Borja Valero, Diego Godin and Antonio Candreva were the most notable names to exit the club during the summer, with Cristiano Biraghi and Victor Moses failing to make their loan moves to Inter permanent.
Transfers Rating – 8/10
The great Guiseppe Marotta was once again able to successfully present coach Antonio Conte with a Scudetto winning squad, and the former Juventus and Chelsea can have no excuses if he potentially fails to deliver the long awaited triumph as Inter’s squad now possesses some incredible depth in terms of quality and quantity. Loses few points for failing to offload some extra wood like Nainggolan and possibly Christian Eriksen, though they could definitely aid the club in achieving its goals if given the right opportunity.
Atalanta
Gian Piero Gasperini retains most of last season’s squad as his incredible Atalanta adventure continues. Premier League new boys Timothy Castagne and Amad Traore were the two most prolific departures from Bergamo as they made their big money moves towards Leicester City and Manchester United respectively.
On the other hand, a host of young players have joined Atalanta – as per custom – but their major signings could well be Sam Lammers in attack, Aleksey Miranchuk in midfield, and Cristian Romero in defense.
Transfers Rating – 7.5/10
Despite not making any big name signings, Atalanta’s transfer campaign should be counted a success since La Dea managed to protect their best players from the “greedy” Italian and European sharks. The departures of Castagne and Traore brought some good funds by selling two players who weren’t considered as starters, and the arrivals mentioned above will only enrich the squad’s depth in talent.
Lazio
Sporting director Igli Tare had such an illustrious wish list, but eventually the likes of David Silva and James Rodriguez turned down the opportunity to join the capital club. Eventually, Lazio’s main signings ended up being striker Vedat Muriqi, wing-back Mohamed Fares, center-midfielder Andreas Pereira and the returning Wesley Hoedt in defense.
Transfers Rating – 6/10
Just like Atalanta, the Aquile maintained most of their squad and added few players. But while Atalanta already had enough depth from last season, Lazio’s thin squad struggled whenever they had to play twice per week, and their summer signings won’t add the required depth needed for a club that wishes to compete in both Serie A and the Champions League.
Roma
Paulo Fonseca’s side used this transfer session mainly as an opportunity to permanently confirm last season’s arrivals, including Henrik Mkhitarian, Jordan Veretout and finally Chris Smalling in a dramatic fashion. As for the new arrivals, young defender Marash Kumbulla, veteran winger Pedro and striker Borja Mayoral are the only three who meet the eye.
Former captain Alessandro Florenzi has once again been offloaded to a new league as he joined PSG, with Kolarov being another departing veteran. Young wingers Justin Kluivert and Cengiz Under also left the capital without fulfilling their initial potentials.
Transfers Rating – 6.5/10
Roma’s performances could be on the rise, but it’s mainly due to Fonseca’s ongoing adaptation to Italian football. The Giallorossi do have a decent squad, but few more big names were needed in order to challenge for the highest positions on the table.
Milan
Sandro Tonali is obviously Paolo Maldini’s grand deal during the summer as Milan managed to beat their neighbors for the young regista’s signature. But the Rossoneri‘s market didn’t stop there, as they managed to sign several young players including Brahim Diaz, Jans Petter Hauge, Piere Kalulu and Diogo Dalot.
And while the legendary Zlatan Ibrahimovic has extended his contract for an extra season, veterans Pepe Reina, Giacomo Bonaventura and Lucas Biglia were among the players who were given their marching orders. Diego Laxalt and Lucas Paqueta have also left the club.
Transfers Rating – 7.5/10
A solid transfer campaign for Milan who – despite their known lack of resources – enhanced the squad’s depth with several exciting talents while cutting out the no longer needed dead-wood. Drops some points for failing to add one more midfielder – mainly Tiémoué Bakayoko.
Napoli
Speaking of Bakayoko, he ended up eventually at Napoli on deadline day, joining the club’s other major signings, strikers Victor Osimhen and Andrea Petagna.
Kalidou Koulibaly and Arkadiusz Milik were thought to be leaving the Partenopei for good, but both ended up staying after the collapse of several transfer deals, and Allan turned out to be Napoli’s only major departure.
Transfers Rating – 6.5/10
The signing of one of the brightest young attackers worldwide in the form of Osimhen can on its own make this transfer session a successful one for Napoli. And while the botched Koulibaly transfer to Man City could be a blessing in disguise, no positives will emerge from Milik’s unwanted stay at the club, as president Aurelio De Laurentiis will have to watch his former golden boy lose some of his transfer value while being frozen out of Gennaro Gattuso’s squad. On another note, Napoli also missed out on signing a much needed new left-back.
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