Late drama, new emerging stars, and early meltdowns. Calcio is officially back, lads! And if the opening weekend is anything to go by, then we are certainly set for a fascinating Serie A campaign. Curiously, the first matchday witnessed six draws, including some we certainly didn’t expect (we’re looking at you, Inter, Milan and Roma), as well as one blockbuster upset (you know who). So let’s recap the action while pinpointing the best and worst performers from Serie A Round 1 in our first edition of the Tops and Flops series.
Top (Player): Marco Brescianini
This opening round was characterized by a host of brilliant debuts (which we’ll discuss later), but Marco Brescianini was arguably the pick of the lot. The former Frosinone man arrived at Atalanta as a possible replacement for Juventus-bound Teun Koopmeiners, and he certainly made an early case for himself in this regard.
The Italian midfielder scored a brace as La Dea routed Lecce at the Via del Mare by four unanswered goals. Brescianini broke the deadlock with a nice volley and then added the second with a clinical finish. He also showcased his unselfishness by passing the ball to Mario Pasalic while on a hat-trick.
BonusTop (Player): Darko Lazovic
Instead of berating a “flop” on the first round of the season, let’s instead laud another player who had a solid outing.
Darko Lazovic might be one of the most underrated Serie A players over the last decade as he rarely receives the plaudits he deserves.
While we certainly can’t do the Serbian winger justice on our own, the least we can do is highlight his heroics against Napoli. The 33-year-old played an integral role in Verona’s shocking 3-0 win over Antonio Conte’s men, producing two sublime assists.
Top (Manager): Thiago Motta
If you’re going to write a thesis on the importance of choosing the right manager to guide a group of footballers, this would be a good place to start. Juventus fans who have been forced to endure a rigid, uninspirational brand of football for three years under Massimiliano Allegri, have now been finally given a reason to rejoice.
On Monday night, Thiago Motta made his bow at the Allianz Stadium, and for the first time in a very long time, the Bianconeri looked productive and lively while playing a progressive and, dare we say it, entertaining football.
Yes, it was only Como, as many would be quick to remind us, but then again, the new Juventus coach has been given a depleted squad to work with – largely thanks to his several omissions – so this edition remains far from the finished article which will definitely include several more additions.
Flop (Manager): Antonio Conte
While you can always count on a few Antonio Conte meltdowns throughout the season, we didn’t expect it to occur this soon. On the eve of his much-anticipated Serie A return, the Lecce native through the Napoli management under the bus for their ineffective transfer dealings – including failing to offload Victor Osimhen and bring in a proper replacement – while insisting that the club’s revival could require a few years.
Now that would have been an interesting statement had the 55-year-old walked the walk on the following day, but instead, the Partenopei were utterly thrashed by Verona, while failing to offer anything to write home about.
It’s safe to say the Conte-De Laurentiis honeymoon is over.
Top (Team): Verona
For one reason or another, Verona truly seem to enjoy inflicting damage on Napoli. Paolo Zanetti’s new experience had a dream start, with the Gialloblu routing their Southerner visitors by three unanswered goals. Newcomer Dailon Liivramento opened the scoring, while fellow new signing Daniel Mosquera found enough time to score twice despite entering the pitch in the 74th minute.
Verona also enjoyed a stellar start to their Serie A campaign last season before losing steam, so it will be interesting to watch how they will fare this time around.
Flop (Team): Napoli
The result says it all. This was supposed to be the beginning of a new and promising project for Napoli, but the team still looked in shambles as it was last season under the guidance of three different coaches.
Passing judgments remains incredibly premature at this early stage of the season, but you only get one chance to make a good first impression, and Conte’s Napoli failed miserably in this regard.
Top (Goalkeeper): Semuel Pizzignacco
Kudos to Monza who lost the services of Michele Di Gregorio but then found themselves a hidden gem in Serie B to replace the new Juventus goalkeeper.
Semuel Pizzignacco looked lively between the sticks while producing a few impressive saves to preserve the deadlock between the Biancorossi and their hosts Empoli.
Flop (Goalkeeper): Yann Sommer
Despite saving a spot-kick – that was eventually scored on the rebound – Yann Sommer looked like an imposter between the posts. The Swiss made a mess of what should have been a comfortable save, gifting Genoa the lead. He also appeared particularly shaky, while making blunders in his ball distribution.
Nevertheless, Inter as a whole weren’t as sharp as usual, so we can expect the veteran goalkeeper to return to his usual levels sooner rather than later.
Top (Match): Genoa vs Inter
In case you had forgotten just how much you missed Calcio action, the Serie A opener provided an instant reminder with a true classic in front of the superb crowds at the Luigi Ferraris.
This one truly had it all, Genoa taking the lead, Marcus Thuram turning the result upside-down with a mesmerizing brace, some VAR drama, a last-minute spot-kick that was saved only for Junior Messias to pounce on the rebound and kickstart the celebrations for a hard-fought draw against the reigning champions.
Milan’s late comeback against Torino was similarly compelling, but the Marassi opener gets the nod for the back-and-forth action.
Flop (Match): Empoli vs Monza
Truth be told, neither Empoli nor Monza can be blamed for failing to play proper football on a woeful pitch that isn’t fitting to host a Serie D contest.
The state of the turf at the Carlo Castellani last weekend illustrates everything that is wrong with Italian football.
Empoli Apologizes for Poor Pitch Conditions in Season Opener.#Europost pic.twitter.com/Baok0BAubP
— EuroPost Agency (@EuroPostAgency) August 19, 2024
Top: Debut Goals
In football, we often hear about adjustment periods when a player changes clubs. Yet, a host of Serie A newcomers took no time to endear themselves to their fanbases by putting their names on the scoresheet at the first time of asking.
The list features Alvaro Morata (Milan), Livramento and Mosquera (Verona), Marco Brescianini and Mateo Retegui (Atalanta) and Juve’s Samuel Mbangula.
Flop (Debut): Marin Pongracic
Sadly for Marin Pongracic, his Fiorentina debut ended in an early shower due to a second yellow card. This certainly wasn’t the first impression he was hoping for after being chosen as the new marshal at the back for the Viola.
The former Lecce man will have to muster a solid run upon his return from suspension to put this early nightmare behind him. But luckily for the Croatian, his teammates still managed to escape with a 1-1 draw against Parma at the Ennio Tardini.
Top (Super-Sub): Daniel Mosquera
Noah Okafor featured more than any other player in this category last season, and he would have earned yet another mention after salvaging Milan in the dying minutes. Nevertheless, Daniel Mosquera collected a late brace against Napoli on his Serie A debut to usurp the Switzerland international at his own game.
Top (Assist): Nicolò Barella
Just in case you forgot how good Nicolò Barella is at this football thing, he certainly proved his worth yet again with a jaw-dropping assist to Thuram.
Fantastic header Thuram but that cross 🥹
Bend it like Barella pic.twitter.com/3kGeEitgmb— Nima Tavallaey Roodsari (@NimaTavRood) August 17, 2024
Top (Goal): Cristiano Biraghi
While we didn’t witness a majestic goal on the opening weekend, Cristiano Biraghi produced the most fabulous strike in Round 1 with a trademark free-kick. The power and precision left Zion Suzuki stranded, blemishing what had been an almost perfect Serie A debut for the Japanese goalkeeper up until that point.
 |
Follow us on Google News for more updates on Serie A and Italian football |