Italian football is starting to heat up as the summer transfer window takes shape. From smart moves in Milan to Juventus’s mega sponsorship deal, here’s everything you need to know from the past week.
🔁 Transfers & Market Moves
Nicola Zalewski stays at Inter: The Polish international has been signed permanently from Roma for €6.5 million after a successful loan. Confirmed on June 23.
Ange‑Yoan Bonny joins Inter from Parma: The 20-year-old striker’s loan is now permanent for a total fee of €23 million plus €2 million in add-ons. His contract is worth €2 million net per year.
Fiorentina signed midfielder Jacopo Fazzini from Empoli for a reported €8 million plus bonuses. The deal was confirmed on June 26.
Samuele Ricci to AC Milan: The Rossoneri have agreed a deal with Torino for around €25 million including bonuses. Ricci is expected to reinforce Milan’s midfield depth.
Alex Meret extends at Napoli: The title-winning goalkeeper has renewed his contract until 2027, with an option for 2028 – putting to bed interest from Arsenal and Inter.
🔄 Player Movement & Rumours
Tammy Abraham (formerly of Roma) is set for a €20 million move to Besiktas. A deal is in place, pending final paperwork.
Tim Weah (Juventus) is close to joining Nottingham Forest, possibly as part of a swap involving Samuel Mbangula. The American is valued at around €22 million.
Romano Floriani Mussolini, great-grandson of Benito Mussolini, has returned to Lazio after a season-long loan at Juve Stabia. A name that always draws attention, he’s working to make headlines for his performances rather than his lineage.
📊 Club Finances & Strategic Moves
Juventus have extended their partnership with Adidas until 2037 in a huge €408 million deal. This follows a recent €69 million per year renewal with Jeep as shirt sponsor – clear signs of a long-term commercial rebuild.
Serie A clubs are set to receive confirmation of the fixtures for matchdays 1–3 by June 30, with the full schedule to be locked by September 5.
🏆 Competitions & Coaching News
Inter Milan, under new boss Cristian Chivu, continue to impress at the FIFA Club World Cup, with a strong 2–0 win over River Plate on June 25. The club is showing ambition both on the pitch and in the transfer market.
Napoli are quietly reinforcing their Scudetto-winning squad. Having secured Meret, they’re now being linked with another Scottish international after the success of McTominay and Gilmour in Serie A.
🎯 Key Takeaways
Inter are going all-in on youth and cohesion: Zalewski, Bonny, and Chivu form the foundation of a long-term project.
Napoli are building on continuity: renewals and smart reinforcements aim to make them consistent contenders in Europe.
Juventus are focusing on the business side: with their Adidas and Jeep deals, the Old Lady is preparing for financial stability and competitive growth.
Lazio continue to balance heritage and ambition, bringing back young talents from loan to reshape the squad.
🧠 Final Thought
This week marked a transitional phase: deals being finalised, pre-season strategies being laid out, and new leaders stepping forward. As the summer rolls on, the moves made now will set the tone for what promises to be a thrilling 2025/26 Serie A season.
It’s a well trodden path, Serie A to the Premier League. Some all time greats like Gianfranco Zola, Fabrizio Ravanelli and Pierluigi Casiraghi have made the trip to England from Italy. And this summer, three more players have already made moves from Southern to Northern Europe.
Diego Coppola left Hellas Verona for the sunny south coast of England, rocking up in Brighton (pun intended) for €11m on a 5 year deal. Brentford snapped up Michael Kayode from Fiorentina for €15m and Manchester City spent a whopping €55m on Tijjani Reijnders as part of their squad rebuild.
But what can the English fans expect from these three players?
Diego Coppola – Brighton
The 21 year old centre back is one of Italy’s brightest defensive prospects along with Kayode and Leoni. He played 34 games and contributed one goal for Hellas Verona last season as they had a perfectly average season.
Diego Coppola unveiled as a Brighton player
He stood out against much older and more experienced opponents though, with 2.09 tackles per game. He also managed 2.31 interceptions per game, like any good Italian centre back. This put him in the top 1% of Serie A defenders. He was also in the top 1% for aerial duels won with 3.94 per game, a key facet of the game for this “old fashioned” centre back.
Coppola fits the bill for what you think of when you think Italian defender. Great reading of the game, enabling him to make high amounts of interceptions. Strong in the air and disciplined in his positioning, he’ll add much needed strength to Brighton’s back line.
One area he can improve (and will need to at Brighton) is his ball playing. Coppola isn’t what you’d call a ball playing centre back. His composure under a press isn’t fantastic and playing out remains a key facet of Brighton’s game. He is, however, intelligent and adapting to play in Brighton’s back line won’t be difficult for him.
All in all, this is a solid signing and I expect one of the power 5 to pick him up in a few seasons time.
Michael Kayode – Brentford
One of Italy’s most prized future full backs has moved to West London and before long their manager was on his way to North London. Brentford are a club that do their homework and stick to one ethos, so I don’t anticipate there being an issue here.
He only appeared in the Conference League for Fiorentina and played 5 matches before moving on loan to Brentford, but the 20 year old impressed in them. What will he look like long term for Brentford? 80% passing accuracy and 50% crossing accuracy and making 11 interceptions across those 5 games paints a picture of a composed full back who’s always looking to start attacks and contribute across the half way line.
Energetic, calm, disciplined and reads the game well, he’s really highly rated in the Azzurri youth teams and it’s no secret as to why. One criticism that has been levelled at him is the speed of his decision making, but for a young man that will improve.
If he keeps his high energy and good whipped crosses going, he’ll become a fan favourite in no time at all. Expect to see him gradually introduced throughout the season but I reckon by next season he’s the starting right back at Brentford.
Tijjani Reijnders – Manchester City
Ok, you probably know all about him anyway. Or at least a bit about him. The 26 year old comes with a big reputation and an even bigger boots to fill replacing the outgoing Kevin de Bruyne.
After two years at Milan, it seemed a fairly emotional goodbye, but he’s in a good place in his career and I’m sure he’ll make the step up.
Tijjani Reijnders has already played in the Club World Cup for City
Last season Reijnders was the top scoring midfielder across Europe’s big 5 leagues with 15 goals in all competitions as well as another 5 assists. He maintained an 88% passing accuracy across the season the box to box number 8 made over 45 line breaking passes last season.
Intelligent positioning play, strong dribbling, accurate passing and long range shooting. He’s the perfect pre-packaged De Bruyne replacement. He’s even received praise for his engine from Frank Rijkaard – high praise indeed.
Breaking the lines and late arriving in the box will certainly see him fit like a glove into any Guardiola team but the faster tempo and tighter pressing of the Premier League will take some judgement. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out, some big players have gone to City and flopped completely…
The Club World Cup has provided a lot of talking points in the build up to the tournament. And a few more now the tournament is underway. Chief among them is, who does this actually benefit? From forklift drivers conceding ten goals to completely empty stadiums and matches played in blistering heat with exhausted players, the tournament is prompting discussions.
But there may be one man, or one club who can benefit greatly from these glorified exhibitions. Christian Chivu walked into Inter Milan this month hot on the heels of Simone Inzaghi’s swift exit after the Champions League Final humiliation. The UCL final was the latest in a line of Inter collapses as they went from quadruple to trophyless in a matter of weeks.
A tired looking team and pundits questioning pretty much everything about the team. Its age, its rigid formation, the full backs… In any other season, the players would be on holiday now and Chivu and his superiors would be guessing who was going where, what was happening with transfers, who would be able to step up from the younger groups. Instead, they have at least three games to check it out.
Sebastiano Esposito and Asllani starting last night, with de Lima and Sucic off the bench, was a nod to Chivu taking the opportunity to check out a few players. I would expect to see a much less experienced line up for the game against Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds too.
Christian Chivu checks out what his players can offer
Chivu started off with the tried and trusted 3-5-2 that Inzaghi so fervently developed. At its best, Inzaghi’s Inter bewildered opponents with positional interchanges, overloads and energy. At its worst, the shape was too predictable, lacked defensive width and left an ageing squad struggling for their life in midfield.
However, what we saw last night was a little different. In the incredible Californian heat the first half saw an energetic press, quick one touch football and resulted in a lovely move that saw Lautaro equalise at the end of the first half.
Lautaro tries again
Asllani’s clipped ball over the top marked his improvement from a player who appeared more than a little lost in the closing months of last season. The Inter fan base will take a bit more convincing if he stays at the club, and he just might with Calhanoglu flirting with a move to Turkey.
The same problems that Inter struggled with last season began to show through at the end of the game and their predictability shone through. Lautaro’s offside goal was another lovely move and if the one touch football persists, Inter will get it right – they always manage to.
There’s a lack of real creativity in Inter’s midfield. Mkhitaryan is 36 years old and looks every day of it in the burning Pasadena sun. Barella is nowhere near the player he was a year ago, but is it any wonder? The Italian has been almost ever present for club and country for around 3 seasons now. He looks like he needs a long summer break.
Barella, in need of a break, toils in the sun
With a team with the highest average age in Serie A pace is always going to be a problem and with no Dumfries or Thuram in the line up it becomes stark that Inter will struggle in transitions. The final issue is the sheer profligacy in front of goal. Despite the aforementioned problems they face, Inter were by far the better team in this game and should’ve scored three or four goals quite easily.
That they didn’t harps back to games that ultimately cost them the Scudetto last season. Milan away in March being the most obvious example. The midfield problems they face is mostly nitpicking, they still created a lot, but they do need to get better at putting that ball in the back of the net.
The good news for Chivu is, he’s got a couple more games at least to make a full assessment of his squad and to begin to impress ideas upon them before the window opens and the squad takes a well earned break.
We English have a habit of laying claim things that aren’t ours. Like half the World at one point… But one thing we do have a pretty firm claim on is that we invented the beautiful game.
In the 1920s and 30s Benito Mussolini would have Italians believe that Calcio descended from Calcio Storico Fiorentino, the medieval football of Florence. This game was mostly played by noblemen (including Popes) and dates back to 1530 where it was first referenced in Piazza Santa Croce. The game combined elements of football, rugby, wrestling and street fighting, which I guess is where the great Italian defenders of the 70s and 80s were drawing inspritation.
Calcio Storico Fiorentino in the modern day
Benito Mussolini promoted the game as the “true origin” of Calcio in direct contrast to the foreign game of football. He used the game in fascist propaganda to reinforce the idea of Italy’s deep cultural and martial heritage, distancing itself from British influence. The game was even revived in the 1930s in Florence with choreographed pageantry to tie it in with Renaissance and Roman virtues.
But Calcio does owe a lot to British football, including one of its biggest clubs and one of the most iconic kits in the game.
James Richardson Spensley in Genoa
Dr James Richardson Spensley was an English physician and football enthusiast who worked on boats that came through the port in Genoa. During his time in Italy, Dr James would organise football matches with local dockers and as a result, is largely considered to be the first person to bring football to the masses in Italy.
James Richardson Spensley – Apparently…
By 1897 he had founded the Genoa Cricket and Football Club. Not only did he found the club, but he managed it, organised their games and was their goalkeeper. He helped to shape Genoa into the first dominant team of Italian football, winning the first championship in 1898, going on to win another 5 titles with him at the helm. He retired from playing when he was nearly 40 and would go on to manage the side for a few more years before his death in World War One at the Fortress of Mainz.
Had it not been for the four clubs in Turin founded by Edoardo Bosio then Dr James would’ve founded the first club in Italy. The two of them are rightly considered as the Grandfathers of Italian football.
Herbert Kilpin and the Milan cricket club
129 Mansfield Road in Nottingham is an unassuming terraced property that could be any other in England. However, on the 24th January 1870 at this property, a man was born who would go on to shape Italian – and World – football for years to come.
Herbert Kilpin was a lace maker who lived most of his life in Nottingham playing as a Midfielder and Defender for local part time teams. In 1891, he moved to Turin to work for Edoardo Bosio who was an Italian-Swiss textile merchant. Bosio had founded the first ever Italian side, Internazionale Torino, and Kilpin would represent the team in his time with Bosio.
In 1898, however, while living in Milan with Samuel Richard Davies, Kilpin would found AC Milan, then known as the Milan Cricket and Football Club. To this day Milan still uses the English spelling of the city’s name to pay homage to their founder.
He chose the famous red and black stripes after being quoted as saying, “We’re going to be a team of devils. Our colours will be red like fire and black to invoke fear in our opponents”.
Herbert Kilpin striking fear into his opponents in Red and Black
The first elected president of AC Milan was Alfred Edwards with Kilpin acting as player-manager. Milan were, unsurprisingly, immediately successful, winning the championship in 1901 in only their second season. Kilpin spent 9 years with the Milan side and won two more titles in 1906 and 1907.
Herbert Kilpin died in Milan in 1916 aged 46, apparently due to his smoking and drinking habits – another English trait. Little was known, or acknowledged, of his influence over Milan’s early history until the 1990s when Luigi La Rocca tracked down Kilpin’s grave in the Municipal Cemetary in Milan. In 1999 the club paid for a new tombstone acknowledging his role in Milan’s history and in 2010 he was moved into the Famedio in the main building where Milan’s most illustrious personalities are interred.
The Curva Sud pay homage to their founder
John Savage and the spare kits
Nottingham’s influence over Calcio doesn’t finish there though, a few years later in 1903 an Englishman John Savage would help one of Italy’s most iconic clubs gain their iconic kit design.
John Savage was a footballer who had played with Kilpin at Internazionale Torino before joining Juventus in 1900. He was the first foreign player to represent the Old Lady, who at the time wore pink shirts. Savage wasn’t impressed with the quality of them though and likened them to being similar to a “gang of war survivors”. Whatever that means.
He wrote a letter to Nottingham based tailoring company Shaw and Shrewsbury requesting new kits and nearly a month later received a spare set of Notts County kits, in the famous black and white stripes.
Juventus in their new colours alongside some of the old kits
At first, Juventus were not impressed with the change, Domenico Donna – a founder of Juventus – compared them to funeral attire. However, thanks to a remarkable upturn in form in the new kits, Donna labelled the kits as “a symbol of old fashioned Piedmontese elegance”.
Juventus would keep the Notts County kits and the retain the black and white to this day, the link remained so close that when Juventus opened their new stadium in September 2011, Notts County were invited over to play in the first ever game here.
John Savage would go on to referee the 1902 Italian Football Championship final between the other two English influenced clubs, AC Milan and Genoa.
More general influences
The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) was inspired by the structure of the English FA when it was formed in 1898. Not much of a surprise given the English influence of the game in those early years, rules and club structures were based on the English game and most of the clubs were started as cricket and football clubs.
In fact, one of the Italian terms still used today, Il Mister, used to describe a coach is attributed to an affectionate term given to William Garbutt during his time managing Genoa between 1912-27. He won three championships with Genoa and introduced structured training and tactics to Italian football.
Inter and Roma are two clubs that have had English ownership stakes or partnerships in the past and Serie A was brought into British homes in the 90s thanks to James Richardson and his Sunday show Football Italia on Channel 4. That programme, in fact, was responsible for this Calcio fan’s own obsession!
Much like everything else though, England introduced the sport to Italy but Italy took it and ran with it, made it their own and subsequently has won 4 World Cups to England’s one. They even beat England in their own back yard in the Euro 2020 final after a penalty shootout to really assert their dominance over the English game.
While English domestic football has surpassed Italian domestic football for quality and finances, Calcio had some great days in the 80s and 90s and Italian clubs still have joy against Premier League teams in England.
England and Italy will always be inseparable for their love of the game and their passion for it, and we’ll always be linked thanks to those English pioneers back in the day.
It’s a new week, Monday comes and brings with it more from the soap opera that is Calcio. Football in Italy isn’t even being played at the moment but it’s still all going on…
1. Club World Cup Kicks Off in America
Ok so it actually kicked off yesterday, but this week is the turn of the Italians. Inter kick off against CF Monterrey on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning depending on where you’re reading this. Juventus get going on Wednesday night/Thursday morning against Al-Ain.
Inter will be hoping for a little better than their last outing, that Champions League humiliation. Juventus happy to be there without a European final since 2017. So far interest is very low, FIFA will be hoping it increases as time goes on. I’ll be out in Seattle at the end of the Group Stage so look out for some content on that!
2. Will there be anyone left at Milan?
Mike Maignan’s move to Chelsea may have broken down but that doesn’t mean he isn’t looking to move on. Chelsea will come back when the CWC slows down for them and with one year left he looks set to be sold this summer.
Theo Hernandez and Rafa Leao are also rumoured to be on the way out, with Bayern Munich a possible destination for both. That or Saudi Arabia anyway.
Luka Jovic is going at the end of his contract next month, looking likely to join Torino. That other Turin club, Juventus, are sniffing around Pierre Kalulu and Yunus Musah is in discussion with Napoli.
Calabria will also leave when his contract expires and the club confirmed that Ruben Loftus-Cheek is surplus to requirements. Along with fellow Englishmen Tammy Abraham and Kyle Walker departing at the end of their loan spells.
Can the last person to leave Milan turn off the lights?
3. The tug of war for Giovanni Leoni
The highly rated 18 year old is in high demand and it’ll be a miracle if the centre-back starts next season at Parma. Juventus are interested, as are Milan, Napoli, Torino and Inter. A move to Inter would probably appeal most, the shift in focus from Oaktree to younger players and his former manager Christian Chivu being in place will be a big pull.
Giovanni Leoni is a target for most of Serie A
But a bigger pull may be the Premier League. Thomas Frank might not be the newest face at Tottenham Hotspur for long, and the option for Parma to loan him back might sway them to accept this offer. Maybe he prefers the French Riviera? Monaco are also interested, and the chance to live a life of luxury in the millionaires playground has been a big pull in the past for players.
Watch this space, this race could go on a while, but needless to say it’ll develop significantly this week…
4. Sometimes maybe good, Sometimes maybe shit
Had to jump on and edit this part of the post this morning. The FIGC were telling us all that they had aaaaages to make this decision as there were no internationals until September.
Then out of nowhere they appointed Gennaro Gattuso. The former Milan player left his job at Hajduk Split earlier this summer and won the World Cup as a player with the Azzurri in 2006. He’s fiery, he divides opinion and he’s a strict disciplinarian. This will be one to watch through the World Cup qualifiers!
5. Josh Doig to Juventus?
Sassuolo’s 23 year old Scottish Full Back Josh Doig could soon be making a move to Juventus according to rumours. The Scottish Sun are reporting that around €13m would secure his signature for the Bianconeri. The Scottish revolution in Italy is certainly getting out of hand now, has no one watched any Scotland matches???
Italy has fallen in love with Scotland, and Juventus have eyes on Josh Doig
6. Chivu starts life with Inter
Ok, so we alluded to the FIFA Club World Cup earlier in the blog, but with the tournament kicking off, so too is Christian Chivu’s Inter Milan career 2.0.
The young coach, fresh from a spell with their youth team and then rescuing Parma was a very public second choice, but he’s a popular figure at the San Siro so he’ll get a chance to prove himself.
Will he stick with Inzaghi’s 3-5-2? Will he freshen up the side with some younger players? Just how many Parma players is he trying to sign? All of these answers will be a bit clearer by this time next week…
7. Edin Dzeko to get one last Calcio outing?
Rumours were starting late last week that potentially we will see Edin Dzeko in Italy one more time… The former Roma and Inter striker has just left Fenerbahce and the 39 year old is now linked with a move to Florence.
Edin Dzeko scoring for Roma twenty years ago probably…
Yes, that’s right, Fiorentina are apparently lining up a move for the veteran striker. He does guarantee goals, but at 39 does he guarantee games? A deal until 2027 is rumoured to have been offered which would see him play at the top level of Italian football until he’s 41. I’m sceptical, but Calcio constantly surprises you.
Ok you’ll have to bare with me on this one, because I only just about understand it myself. But there’s a “play out” happening tonight in Serie B. A play out, so much as I can figure out, is the same as a play off. But they don’t always happen. They only sometimes happen.
Welcome to another Calcio madness…
So the relegation from Serie B is settled by the bottom three going down. Sometimes it’s the bottom four though. But sometimes you can finish 5th bottom and be relegated. How? Well it depends how fair ahead of 4th bottom you finish. Still with me?
If you finish the Serie B campaign in 20th, 19th or 18th you’re down no matter what. Now normally the 17th place team will also be relegated. But there could also be a play out between the 17th and 16th place team as long as the gap between them is 4 points or fewer. So finishing 16th guarantees you safety as long as you finish 5 points ahead of 17th placed team.
But the season finished three weeks ago, so what’s been the hold up? We all saw the scenes of Sampdoria being relegated and the top class shithousing from Genoa supporters celebrating? How come they’re playing tonight.
Sampdoria were relegated to Serie C for the first time in their history. Or were they?
Well, it’s “simple” really. Sampdoria finished 18th, so were relegated. Salernitana were 17th and Frosinone were 16th, separated by a point and Brescia were 15th by dint of having better goal difference than Frosinone.
And then the news broke that broke hearts of Calcio fans of a certain vintage. Brescia had gone bust, they probably won’t be around anymore and their financial misfortune could cost them points. The FIGC acted swiftly and dished out a 4 point penalty at the end of the season.
That meant that Sampdoria have been briefly spared. Brescia took the 18th place after that and Sampdoria escaped automatic relegation to move into 17th. The biggest winners? Frosinone. They’re now not involved in the relegation picture at all.
The final table after the 4 point deduction to Brescia
Cue absolute legal pandemonium. Brescia are obviously challenging the ruling, Salernitana aren’t happy and Sampdoria are remaining suspiciously quiet. There’s suits and countersuits going on all over the place and beneath it all, Sampdoria take on Salernitana in the first leg tonight.
Sampdoria haven’t been spared some shenanigans from their city rivals Genoa though. The Genoa fans are determined to make sure Sampdoria play in front of an empty stadium and have taken advantage of Samp putting tickets on at €5 each to fill the ground. They’re purchasing up tickets in the name of Genoa legends past and present and plan to then leave the seats empty.
Whatever happens tonight and next week, it’s not a situation where the FIGC covered themselves in glory and it doesn’t reflect well on Italian football that these situations come up. But it can’t take away the excitement of two winner takes all games.
Keep your eyes on this one, even when the football is done, I don’t think we’ve heard the last of this relegation battle.
Italy’s second team in the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup is Juventus. The Bianconeri players set off for Miami this week all decked out in some rather fantastic baseball style shirts – if you haven’t seen them, head to Juventus’ Instagram page now!
Will the Allianz Stadium become the trophy’s permanent home?
Like Inter, Juventus are coming to the tournament off the back of a trophy-less season although not straight off the back of a humiliating Champions League final. Juve qualified for the CWC thanks to their ranking of 8th in the UEFA’s 4 year ranking, despite not appearing in a Champions League final in that time.
Igor Tudor was appointed in late March and they only lost one game after that, qualifying for next years Champions League in 4th place – something that secured him the job for a further two years.
But you already know all this, you know all this about Juventus. What about their opponents? What do we know about the rest of Group F? Well, you’re in the right place, check out the lowdown below.
Manchester City
I’m not sure they need a lot of introduction. By far the favourites to win the group and one of the favourites for the entire tournament, City are the team everyone wanted to avoid. Hurt from a poor trophyless season themselves, they’ve been spending big – nearly €400m since January – and they’re refreshed and ready to go.
New arrivals Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki will add threat behind Erling Haaland. The 2023 Champions League winners are Juve’s last opponents in the group, which looks likely to be the decider for who tops the group and avoids a probable tie with Real Madrid in the Round of 16.
It’s hard to pick just one player to watch for Man City and there’s some obvious choices but I’m eager to see how they deal with the lack of Kevin de Bruyne after his move to Napoli. There are a number of players who could step into this role and the potential three man attacking midfield of Reijnders, Cherki and Marmoush should have more than enough skill and firepower to replace one man.
Tijjani Reijnders signed for Man City early to join them in America
Some of the lesser known younger talents at City have travelled and will certainly not be out of place based on their finish to the season with the likes of Rico Lewis and Nico O’Reilly flourishing late this campaign. City are widely expected to top this group and it’ll take a special performance from Juve in Orlando to stop that happening.
Al-Ain FC
Juve’s first opponents are the UAE’s most successful club. They are 14 time champions, 7 times cup winners and hold two AFC Champions Leagues. The Abu Dhabi based club won the competition in 2024 with star striker Soufiane Rahimi the top scorer and best player.
The forward has scored 5 times in 14 appearances for Morocco and is known for his clinical finishing, direct running and explosiveness in transition. The pacey striker is more than capable of causing problems for Gatti and co.
Soufiane Rahimi, or “Mr Clutch” is a threat to Juventus
Rahimi is nicknamed “Mr. Clutch” in the UAE media, given his propensity to turn up in the big matches, scoring 5 times in two matches against Al-Hilal in the 2024 AFC Champions League Semi Final. For comparisons in Europe, think Luis Diaz or Rafa Leao. If he’s not marked tightly, he has the potential to cause some real problems for Juventus.
Alongisde Rahimi, look out for Kodjo Laba, the forward has scored 20 goals in 21 games this season. Behind them, will be Kaku. Better known as Alejandro Romero, the Paraguay international is considered a set piece expert and has contributed to 15 goals this season.
Al-Ain have actually had a disappointing campaign this time out and despite coming into the tournament on the back of 4 wins in their last 6, they finished the season in 5th position – a whole 19 points behind eventual winners Shabab Al-Ahli.
Wydad AC
Much like Juventus this season, draws have cost Wydad dearly. Nearly half of their results were draws, with 12 stalemates in their 30 games in the Moroccan League. They did win 14 games, however, which meant they finished a strong 3rd postiion, despite being 16 points behind the champions.
Defensively sound, but with a lack of real firepower, they could be an Italian team and the 2022 African Champions League winners are here to prove a point. They are 22 times champions of Morocco and are even nicknamed the “Club of the Nation” because of their dominance in the country.
Expect veteran winger Nordin Amrabat to cause issues, the older brother of former Fiorentina player Sofyan, his big game experience will be key if Wydad don’t want to finish bottom of this group as is expected of them.
Wydad could be a dark horse in this tournament, Juventus won’t underestimate them.
The Italian theme continues with their defensive stalwart Amine Farhane. The 31 year old centre back is a no-nonsense, old school defender who relies on his positioning, strength and aerial dominance. Very Leonardo Bonucci.
Forward Mohamed Rayhi is going to be a headache for the likes of Alberto Costa or Savona. Playing off the left, the Dutchman is a direct forward who will constantly look to run in behind, especially when Wydad win the ball and transition to forward areas.
Look out for his quick release, he won’t dribble very often and he won’t hold the ball. He’s a limited dribbler who relies on time and space to receive the ball in positive areas, where he’ll then get snap shots away. The instinctive finisher can use both feet but is stronger off the left foot.
What Next?
Well, Juventus are expected to make it through the group stage fairly comfortably, but the battle for first with Man City will be key. The reason for this? Real Madrid. First place in Group G will get to play second place in Group H next and vice versa. When you see that Group H contains, Real Madrid, Al Hilal, CF Pachuca and RB Salzburg, you’ll understand the importance of winning Group G.
Topping the group will be key to avoid a meeting with Real Madrid in Round 2
With Real likely to top Group H, second in Group G provides a stern test very early in the tournament. If Juve were to top the group, it looks like it’ll be Al Hilal in Round 2 and a chance to take on old foe Simone Inzaghi, unless Pachuca or Salzburg can pull a surprise out of the bag.
After that, it’s anyone’s guess who’s in the Quarter Final, it could potentially mean a meeting with Inter which would certainly bring the CWC into the living rooms of everyone in Italy. Maybe it would even be 4-4 again…
Here it is then, finally, the long awaited part three to the Calcio weekender review! After two days in Bologna, it was time to actually spend a day there. With no travelling to be done for this match, there’s a bit of tourism writing here!
Bologna had never really ever occurred to me as a tourist destination. Sure you go to Milan, Rome, Sicily, Turin – but Bologna? Short of being the home of bolognese, I didn’t really know anything about it.
Well hold on to your hats folks, because it turns out it’s bloody beautiful. Not as hustly and bustly as some of the bigger cities I mentioned earlier, Bologna is chilled. A perfect place to spend a day sat outside cafes with a coffee watching the world go by.
Not that there’s nothing to do there. Isabelle and I left the apartment with a clear plan of our day after a quick Google. We had plans, we’d researched what we were going to do, so what could go wrong?
Well. It was Monday by now. Despite the fact I was off work, booked annual leave and wasn’t supposed to be contactable, I work in sales so I’m never really off the clock other than weekends or Christmas. And sure enough, I was awoken by the sound of my work mobile going off. A crisis for one of my customers that needed sorting.
Cue an entire morning of back and forth phone calls with the customer and my office, with Isabelle’s face increasingly more fuming as the minutes passed! Don’t get me wrong, being sat in my office dealing with the crisis wouldn’t have been anywhere near as nice as sitting in a cafe Piazza Maggiore dealing with it.
Crisis resolved, I was marched back to the apartment by Isabelle to deposit the work phone and focus on her and Bologna. That’s where I noticed I still had Andrea’s sons fan card from Parma a few days before. Surely not, what a ballache!
A quick phone call, and I had an address to send it to. But no stationary to send it with and no idea how to send it. I figured it must be easier to post in Italy than when I get home so Isabelle and I set off for the nearest Post Office.
Now if you think UK/US post offices are a nightmare, at least you speak the language. PostItalia in Bologna was at least air conditioned but that’s where the positives end. When my number was called I approached the desk and opened with my best, “Ciao, Inglese??”. To be met with a firm shake of the head. Well how the fuck are we going to do this?
Turns out there’s no phone signal or free WiFi in this particular branch so speaking into Google translate is out. No amount of gesturing to the fan card, then to the address on my screen was working. Shouting “SEND” or “POST” while doing it wasn’t working either.
Finally, the bloke in the next booth was done with his client and apparently spoke some English and came to help. It cost me roughly €5 all in for the envelope and postage and I swiftly sent the tracking number to Andrea and wished him all the best in receiving because who knows if it’s making it there!
Well, it’s time to enjoy our day in Bologna, surely. We head straight for Le Due Torre, a large tower sticking out of the ground made of the local red brick. Nowadays it sticks out like a sore thumb but apparently in Bologna’s heyday there were loads of these towers all over town.
Le Due Torre
As we arrive, there’s a notice on the door, it’s closed for renovations while we’re out of season. Of course it is. Now what? Back to Google. The Clock Tower is open, over in Piazza Maggiore. Looks like that’s the plan.
We head over and finally greeted with a bit of good luck. It’s open and tickets aren’t ridiculously priced. It’s a shame there’s no lift to the top, but Italy is a country with many old buildings so I didn’t really expect one. I’m not a man exactly built for lots of stairs but the Clock Tower breaks it up nicely with art exhibitions on each floor so it’s not just constant climbing. The views from the top are great, over Piazza Maggiore, the entire city and over to the hills outside of town.
Your guides in this journey
There’s just sight of the evening entertainment too, right over in the distance you can catch a glimpse of the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara. Home of Bologna FC since 1927. Tonight Isabelle and I are finishing our Calcio epic at Bologna v Napoli, an exciting prospect in a Serie A season where Napoli are chasing down Inter (they eventually succeeded, spoiler alert) and Bologna are pushing hard for a return to the Champions League (they fell away late and didn’t make it).
First, we need some lunch and it was time to embrace a tradition for Isabelle and I. Some people also partake, some people think we’re mad to do it in Italy. But we always, wherever we visit across the World, always, have a McDonald’s one day for lunch. For those who don’t know, the menus in McDonald’s are wildly different all over the World so we always insist on seeing what each country offers that the UK doesn’t.
Sorry…
On this occasion, Italy didn’t really offer anything more exciting that being able to have a beer with my meal, my favourite thing about European McDonald’s. I went for a spicy chicken burger of some description while Isabelle went for her favourite food of all time, wings – something else unavailable in the UK.
Our afternoon was spent exploring the rest of the town fairly aimlessly, basically walking around flitting from bar to bar, it’s matchday and I’m English so obviously beer is required. It’s also always required when there’s a city with the ambience and weather of Bologna.
When I tell you this city is beautiful, there’s no lie, it is gorgeous. The architecture on nearly every building is unique and ornate. I’ve no doubt that if I headed out of the centre to the outskirts I’d see the normal high rise flats built in the 1970s, but I’ve rarely seen a city centre like this.
We stumbled across the Finestrella. A small canal running along a street in Bologna, and rather cheekily named “Little Venice” locally. It’s literally one canal so I’m not sure it can rival Venice, or even Milan’s Navigli area! There’s a small window in a wall that opens out onto the street, but there was an awful long queue of travel influencers queuing up to take videos of the window opening to a trending audio. If you head across the road there’s an equally good view which is below.
Finestrella
As we edged closer to match time, I decided we should get some dinner. Kick off was at 9pm so around 5pm I thought we should eat and begin our journey to the ground. The stadium is around a 30/40 minute walk and I had designs on pub crawling down there!
We ate at Sfoglia Rina on a few recommendations. There’s no reservations so expect to queue, but we weren’t waiting longer than ten minutes for a table. Sfoglia Rina all feature fresh pasta made on site and is a popular place with locals and tourists alike. There’s one large table in the middle where different groups can all sit together. Not really my thing, so we plumped for a small table for two on the outside.
Isabelle was keen to have a proper Bologna bolognese and went for the Taglietelle Bolognese Ragout, which was delicious and I had the Gramigna with Sausage Ragout. It was absolutely fantastic. A great meal to end our time in Italy.
Tasted better than it looked!
After the meal, we popped into the Celtic Druid Irish Pub around the corner, we’d been in a couple of times when returning from the other cities and I knew there was a lot of Bologna FC themed decoration and figured there’d be some fans in pre-match.
I wasn’t wrong and the atmosphere was lively. I love the way Italians talk so expressively and with their hands. Even though I don’t know what they’re saying, I can pick out footballer and team names, there’s so much discussion on the previous weekends Calcio going on here.
We have a couple of pints here and begin the long trek to the ground, stopping at a few pubs along the way. The amount of people on the street increases the closer we get and there’s a few livelier fan bars here. In one I’m immediately accused of being “Napolista” because I’m different to them. I refer him to the fact I’m English and show Isabelle’s scarf bought earlier at the club shop in the City Centre and I’m immediately bought a sambuca and welcomed. I’m not sure how many more sambucas I can take.
When we head to the ground it’s about half an hour before kick off, and this is a mistake. The beautiful old facade to the stadium is also the only entry point to that stand, which is where our tickets were. There’s only two gates and two long queues stretch in either direction and in a very Italian way there’s absolutely no organisation. The queue is carnage, absolute chaos. It’s anarchy. The Brit in me breaks out in a cold sweat.
The other uniquely Italian thing about the queue is across the road from it, it is easily the biggest moped parking area I’ve ever seen. It raises a smile in me, this is a unique country and I love it.
Italy…
We eventually get into the ground about 5 minutes before kick off and head to our seats and we’re confronted with another Italianism of football matches. Just because your ticket has a seat number on it, unless you get in early don’t expect to be able to sit there.
It’s every man for himself and we arrive to our seats to see them filled with Napoli fans. Again, in Italy it’s very common for away fans to sit in any area of a stadium and not just the allocated away section. You won’t find them in the ultras section obviously, but they’re generally accepted. If you’re watching your team as an away team in the home end, just don’t rub it in if you’re winning. You’re allowed to cheer the goals, but not excessively, then sit down and shut the fuck up is basically the rules.
Chaos reigns in the queue…
Even last year at the Milan derby I was sat with both Inter and Milan fans who were chatting about the game together.
Anyway, the section we’re in is crazy, the game is sold out so rather than go in the hunt for two seats together, we plonk ourselves down on the stairs with a few others and watch the first half. Napoli take the lead after 18 minutes through Anguissa. It’s a scrappy goal that started with some nice football and Anguissa going through 1v1. The goalkeepers attempt to close him down results in a messy “rounding” of the keeper by Anguissa who taps in as he’s falling over.
No one in a Napoli shirt cares how good or scrappy the goal is though, and they’re up. Flares are lit and the noise cranks up a level in the ground. Bologna aren’t in the game and they’re in danger of being overrun here. Napoli can smell blood after Inter’s draw on Saturday.
Napoli fans all over the ground celebrate taking the lead…
Half time comes and Isabelle and I have noticed a smattering of empty seats right down at the front, so we head there (via the bar). Down in position right in the front row, we strike up conversation with a half drunk guy next to us. He’s Scottish and travelling Italy watching football, and came to this game to see the obvious Scott McTominay, but also last season’s best midfielder winner Lewis Ferguson who turns out for Bologna.
As the second half gets underway Bologna have decided to play. They’re much more positive, much more decisive and much quicker. The Napoli section quietens down and the Bologna ultras step it up. They’re rewarded in the 64th minute when Dan Ndoye scores a quite audacious goal. Meeting a cross from the left he flicks it through his own legs with his heel, the ball rising to meet the underside of the bar and settle in the back of the net.
Dan Ndoye celebrates his equaliser…
They deserve the equaliser and there’s absolute pandemonium. Suddenly Conte’s team look happy with their point and there’s a ten minute spell where they look like they won’t get it. Eventually, the game settles back down and rather peters out in the final few minutes. Napoli have done a good job of killing the momentum Bologna were enjoying.
All told, the point is probably deserved. It’s not terrible for Napoli who saw Inter also drop points. And it kind of helps Inter out too. As we leave the ground with our new Scottish friend in tow, there’s a row of buses waiting and we hop straight on one heading for the City Centre.
We depart the bus outside the Celtic Druid pub and head in for a nightcap. The trip to Italy is coming to an end and tomorrow I’ll be hungover in an airport heading for home. It’s been three fantastic days and we haven’t seen one team win a game, witnessing three draws. I guess that’s almost appropriate for a country whose entire football identity is built on strong defence.
Writing these reviews of the long weekend have done nothing to quench my thirst to get back out to Italy and watch some more Calcio. I was over there 4 times last season and it wasn’t enough. As I mentioned back in part one, in my opinion Italy does food, beer, football (and women) better than anyone in the world and I think it comes from passion. Watch an Italian talk to another person and there’s passion oozing out of them, they apply the same to cooking, their football, to everything. Last week the fixtures for 2025/26 were released and I’m already planning trips.
Overwhelming success of the Calcio Weekender day one post was so warmly appreciated, thanks so much for recommending it to everyone you know! I promised that it was three matches in three days and as promised, here’s day two.
Sunday morning was just as beautiful as day one and it’s fair to say that after a long day in Parma we didn’t exactly spring out of bed. Again, anyone else who’s raising a 15 year old girl will know that it isn’t as simple as just getting up and going again!
But we rose at the sound of an alarm, there was more travelling to be done and no time to lay in bed waiting. Now, in the previous post I was extolling the virtues of the Italian rail system but today I curse it. Nothing to do with the network, but the pricing of it this time.
So, it may be cheap if you’re travelling in the same region, but leaving Emilia Romagna and heading to Tuscany shoots the price up a fair bit! Over €100 for the two of us. Surely there’s a cheaper option? You better believe it.
For a fraction of that price and frankly the same amount of time, Isabelle and I would be travelling to Florence for the day with the big green Flixbus. Shockingly comfortable is how I would describe the experience. Isabelle and I would be on the 8:45am bus to Florence from Bologna bus station, which arrived at a reasonable 10:05am.
Firstly, the drive through the Tuscan hills was bloody spectacular, some beautiful scenery. Secondly, there was plenty of comfortable leg room even for me at 6ft4in. The temperature was comfortable and the ride smooth. And all this for a mere £23 return. For us both. Incredible value I thought.
The Flixbus takes you to Villa Costanza, a small bus station on the edge of town, serviced by a regular tram that comes straight to the main station. Easy.
When we arrived, there was just enough time to grab a quick snack at the shop before loading up onto the tram and heading into Florence. The point of this day trip was to suss out what Florence was like. It’s been on the list for some time, everything I’ve ever read about sculptures, art, renaissance etc all seems to point you in the direction of Florence.
So I wanted to check it out first, this seemed like a good idea. I have to say, it’s beautiful. Isabelle and I headed straight for the Duomo and it lived right up to the expectations I had of it. History pours out of every building. We didn’t head into the museums or Duomo, it was a day trip so we just came here to check out the scenery more than anything.
Plus, this is a football blog, this is a football trip. There was a match to get to in the afternoon. Sunday is football day in Italy and the gods of Futbology had informed me there was a derby going on locally in Serie D.
You guessed it, we were heading to Prato to see the city derby between Zenith Prato and AC Prato. Now, no, I’d never heard of the city or the teams, but football is football. I’ll go watch anything.
Prato is around 20 minutes by train from Firenze and the trip out there cost us less than €10 for us both. The Stadio Lungobisenzio is less than ten minutes walk from the station and in the sun it’s a glorious walk. I’d tried through Twitter/X to get some information on tickets and there wasn’t really any at all. The two clubs share a stadium in the city, much like in Milan, although the level is a little different.
The stadium is old, but has nods to a former golden age, with a large structure for one stand which looks quite grand from a distance, until you get close and see the paint peeling off the walls and the faded Olympics logo.
There’s a Gillingham style temporary stand behind one goal and flats behind the other. The opposite side of the main stand has a lovely view over a mountain. Now, I’ve watched Serie C before and wasn’t entirely bowled over by the level, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from D.
Well, that question was answered when we arrived at the ground around 45 minutes before kick off and everything was closed up. People were sat on the steps waiting for the one entrance to open. The little ticket booth was open, however, so I offered up my €10 and was presented with one adult ticket and a free kid ticket.
When the gates finally opened around 30 minutes before kick off, we made our way in to the unreserved main stand and took a seat. Things started to get busy about 10-15 minutes before kick off but there was something nagging at me. Where were the away fans? AC Prato fans were all hanging around a bar by the station, but shouldn’t they be here now?
Well, as it turns out, this derby was about to lose a big sting in the tail. The AC fans had decided to boycott the game and subsequent other games due to a dispute with the clubs ownership. Something I see happening a lot here in Italy.
My concerns about the level of the Serie D football was confirmed when two of the AC Prato players were warming up in full kit as they didn’t seem to have training tops. The warm up seemed to consist of groups of players stood in a circle doing keep ups. I was more than a little concerned…
Concerns that were indeed well founded. Twenty minutes into the game and still nothing had happened. Wayward passes, shots looping way off target and defensive mix ups, yet still nothing. Now, I’m no snob, I just love football, but with the missing away fans this game was lacking any real spark.
But hold on, what’s that noise? I can hear drums and chanting off in the distance. And is that a whiff of smokebomb I just got? It was, there’s some white smoke off behind that away end. I’m sure I just saw a flag wave too.
The AC Prato fans were in attendance, without being in attendance. They came down to support their team, from a distance and without going in and funding the owners they protest against.
They don’t hang around, however, and soon the game drifts back to silence and very little action. There’s a few bright sparks out there, one of the Zenith lads in centre midfield is tricky. He’s got pace and he can take players on, confident. Perhaps over confident though, he keeps taking it a step too far.
We make it all the way to the 89th minute before there’s any action to speak of in this game. After a typically rough scramble in the penalty area, AC are awarded a penalty. Players are down all over the pitch, walking wounded. Well, not walking, they’re all prone. This delay could get in the head of the taker. Surely not though? He’s still got to put it away, penalties are easy.
Well, nope. As it turns out, this game was about to take another lurch to the ridiculous. The penalty is ballooned over the bar, high. In fact, two months on it could still be rising. At least the bar was open though. Cheap beers, in the sun, watching football, what could be better? That’s what these trips are all about!
We head back to Firenze straight after full time, we have a bus to catch after all. One piece of advice for anyone travelling by Flixbus like us, get an early tram. The exodus from the main station at the end of the day is almost ridiculous. Americans are everywhere and the queues to get on a tram to the outskirts of town is excessive.
Once we make it to Villa Costanza, we board the coach and take the opportunity to relax. Another hectic day of travelling around, but less intense than the previous day, less panicking and less rushing around. And less alcohol.
I’ll go back to Florence for a proper trip at some point, I’d love to see La Viola play. The food and drink as usual in Italy was spot on, although we weren’t able to get into the viral sandwich shop All’Antico Vinaio, next time I guess…
We’re only a month on from the end of the 2024/25 season in Italy and already there’s more talking points that throughout most of the actual season. And the main one seems to be, who on Earth is going to be managing in Serie A next season?
Axes have been wielded, resignations have been handed in and managers have been caught flirting with rival clubs. So what’s going on? And what’s still to come? Hopefully I’ve made sense of it below for you…
Fiorentina
After being appointed in June last year to replace Vincenzo Italiano, Fiorentina manager Raffaele Palladino has left the club “by mutual consent”. There’s no replacement as yet, although Stefan Pioli is being heavily linked with the role according to Viola Nation. Seen by some as a stabilising influence, he’ll need to use all his experience to turn around a gradual decline in Firenze.
Atalanta
After 9 very successful years at the club, Gian Piero Gasperini has left Atalanta. During his time in Bergamo, Gasperini led Atalanta into the Champions League five times and his tenure was characterised by swashbuckling attacking play. He famously led the team to the 2024 Europa League title.
His replacement at Atalanta? It’s a baffling one… Ivan Juric has been handed the reigns in Northern Italy. That’s the same Ivan Juric that oversaw a disastrous spell in Rome last season before heading to England to somehow make Southampton worse than they already were – avoiding being the worst team in Premier League history by 1 point.
Roma
Gasperini comes through the door at Roma replacing firm fan favourite Claudio Ranieri. His move “upstairs” may be put on hold, however, with the news that Spalletti is leaving the national team job. Ranieri is the favourite to take the Azzurri through the rest of the World Cup qualifying campaign. Watch this space!
Lazio
Across the city and Roma’s great rivals Lazio have also had a change in the dugout after a rather underwhelming end to the season. A comeback draw at the San Siro to hand Napoli the Scudetto was a brief highlight in an otherwise forgettable season under Marco Baroni. He was dismissed and Maurizio Sarri is back after a 15 month hiatus. Sarri was announced in spectacular fashion by the media team at Lazio and the former banker will be chain smoking his way through next season with the hopes he can restore the Lazio empire.
AC Milan
In Italy’s second city, change is also afoot. For the second time in a season Milan sacked their manager after Fonseca didn’t see in 2025, Conceicao is now also gone. An underwhelming season all round, Conceicao paid the price for an 8th place finish and no European football next season after a Coppa Italia final defeat. However, brief respite was offered in the shape of a 3-2 defeat of city rivals Inter in the Supercoppa final.
Allegri returns to Milan for next season after a break from the game following a trophy-laden spell at Juventus. In his first spell at Milan, he won the Serie A title and Supercoppa, Milan certainly hope he can repeat that next season.
Inter Milan
So near, yet so far to a treble. Dumped out of the Coppa Italia in the semi finals by Milan, beaten in the Supercoppa final, trounced in the Champions League final and second to Napoli by a point. Inter’s season could broadly be viewed as fairly successful until April. Simone Inzaghi was in demand from Al-Hilal and the news breaking in the run up to the final didn’t help their preparation.
A mutual parting followed a 5-0 defeat from PSG. Inter acted swiftly to woo Cesc Fabregas who promptly turned them down in a rather embarrassing episode. Christian Chivu is the man to take them forward. Their former centre back was manager of the Under 19 team who won the Primavera before being installed at Parma to secure Serie A survival. It’s a gamble, but Inter weren’t left with much choice with the Club World Cup on the horizon.
Torino
Further down the table, Torino parted company with Paolo Vanoli and replaced him almost immediately with Marco Baroni following his sacking by Lazio.
Parma
Parma only confirmed today that Christian Chivu had left the club after only a few short months. He replaced Fabio Pecchia in February and had the brief to save the club from an immediate return to Serie B. He did it, and then left for Inter. Rumours about a replacement are few and far between, but they’ll need to act fast to avoid losing out in the summer transfer window.
Italy National Team
In true bizarre fashion, national team manager Luciano Spalletti announced his own sacking in a press conference after a 3-0 defeat in Norway. But he’s not going anywhere yet… He’s managing the team tonight against Moldova before finally leaving. Clear? Thought not. Ranieri is the favourite to replace him since Calcio has some clear agenda on letting the poor guy retire in peace.
And there you have it. It’s been a matter of weeks since Serie A finished and the soap opera continues. Honourable mention to Juventus who look set to appoint Igor Tudor permanently after he finished off the season Thiago Motta started. Who do you think is the best appointment? Who’s undersold themselves and Who just got it plain wrong?
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