Published on Aug, 16 2024
Serie A is almost back! One of the most exciting leagues in world soccer returns this weekend as Inter look to defend their title across 38 matchdays while AC Milan, Juventus and others hope they finish the season at the summit of Italian soccer. American Christian Pulisic is looking to have another big season at Milan, new star talents arrived in the league and the squads are as competitive as ever.
Equally exciting, Matchday 2's battle of AC Milan at Parma will air on CBS, marking the first time CBS will air a Serie A game on broadcast TV.
Ahead of the action, here are our expert picks for how the season in Italy will play out.
Champions
Despite both AC Milan and Juventus trying to catch the defending champions, Inter are still the favorites to win the 2024-25 Serie A Scudetto and win their second title in a row. Simone Inzaghi's side are still the best, and after signing free agents Piotr Zielinski and Mehdi Taremi, they have a roster that can guarantee even more depth to the Italian manager. However, Inter need to do better in the Champions League's campaign this season after they were eliminated by Atletico Madrid in the round of 16 in the past season. That can be their main obstacle in pursuit of the Scudetto – Francesco Porzio
Surprise team
It was an exciting summer for AS Roma after the Giallorossi made two important signings with Matias Soule from Juventus and Artem Dovbyk from Girona, and immediately made Daniele De Rossi's side one of the most interesting to watch this summer. Despite the expectations, AS Roma will definitely be part of the top four race, and they will have to deal with an Antonio Conte Napoli that won't participate in any European competition this season and that will only focus on the league. – Francesco Porzio
Biggest disappointment
After an exciting season that brought Bologna to a historic Champions League qualification, the Italian side made multiple changes this summer as coach Thiago Motta left Bologna to join Juventus and was replaced by former Fiorentina manager Vincenzo Italiano. On top of that, Joshua Zirkzee, their best player last year, joined Manchester United while Riccardo Calafiori also left the club and was signed by Arsenal. That's too many changes to repeat last year's surprise performance. – Francesco Porzio
Serie A top scorer
Lautaro Martinez has the potential to repeat himself this season, but the last time that a player was the Serie A top scorer for two seasons in a row was Antonio Di Natale at Udinese (2009-10, 2010-11). This is why it's difficult to imagine him doing it again, while Dusan Vlahovic at Juventus is expected to drastically improve his performances under Thiago Motta in the new Bianconeri era. – Francesco Porzio
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