The penultimate round of fixtures in Italy’s top flight for the 2022-23 season again provided plenty of goals, controversy and drama.
Juventus’ costly 1-0 loss against AC Milan saw their hopes of European football suffer a significant blow.
And champions Napoli dropped more points amid the uncertainty surrounding the club.
Elsewhere, Jose Mourinho’s Roma lost again and Inter Milan – ahead of their Champions League final against Manchester City on June 10 – beat Atalanta in a five-goal thriller.
And below, Mail Sport’s ALVISE CAGNAZZO talks us through 10 things we learned from another intriguing weekend of football in Serie A.
The penultimate round of fixtures in Italy’s top flight again provided plenty of goals and drama
AC Milan beat Juventus 1-0 thanks to a fine goal from veteran striker Olivier Giroud (pictured), and below, Mail Sport’s Alvise Cagnazzo discusses 10 things we learned from Serie A
1 – DYBALA MISSES OUT AGAIN
After his absence in the Fiorentina vs Roma clash, not even making the bench, an embarrassing statistic for Paulo Dybala was confirmed.
Due to missing out, the Argentine forward will definitely not be able to match the 2,614 minutes he managed in his final season at Juventus. He is currently at 2,348, with two games left this season to increase that tally.
Roma’s collapse has been steep and the loss at Fiorentina destroyed their faint hopes of attaining Champions League football next season.
As always, Jose Mourinho’s side played defensively, only managing eight shots and four on target compared to 15 and six respectively from the hosts.
More alarmingly, without Dybala, Roma were lacking in quality and Fiorentina dominated the ball, making 494 passes with 66 per cent – nearly two thirds – of possession.
‘La Joya’ will almost certainly be staying next season but the rest of the Roma team might look very different.
The Giallorossi seem unable to get results without Dybala, such a tactical and technical icon for them, and it will be another season without challenging in Europe’s top competition for Paulo and Co.
Paulo Dybala could not play for Roma, who again missed out on Champions League football
2 – INTER CAN NOW COUNT ON LUKAKU
Romelu Lukaku is on fire. His performance against Atalanta was exceptional, he destroyed Giorgio Scalvini – the best defender under 23 in Serie A – and he showed he has rediscovered the physical prowess of his best ever spells.
His progression to top speed has been devastating and his goalscoring ability has raised questions for manager Simone Inzaghi about whether to start him in the Champions League final against Man City.
Lukaku’s showing against Atalanta was perfect, an extraordinary display of quality in his 81 minutes on the pitch and proving his ability to help his side through difficult moments in the match.
His link-up with strike partner Lautaro Martinez is a genuine threat because they seem to have perfect chemistry. When the two centre forwards are in optimal physical shape, the three central midfielders also benefit from the work of Lukaku and Martinez in attack.
The Chelsea loanee’s future will not be known for a few more weeks but much will depend on the outcome of the Champions League final.
Inter Milan can count on Romelu Lukaku, whose partnership with Lautaro Martinez is thriving
3 – CONTE PRESENT AT JUVENTUS’ STADIUM
With the summer transfer window about to open, Juventus seem intent on bringing home a former icon of the team to restore goodwill among the fans.
The presence of manager Antonio Conte in the stands at the Allianz Stadium got tongues wagging about a coach who is now a free agent. However, Conte’s presence should not be considered as overwhelming proof of his return to the helm at Juve.
After his dismissal from Tottenham, Conte returned to live in the city of Turin with his wife and daughter, relaxing back in Italy after his unsuccessful and tumultuous spell in England.
His salary would be even higher than that of Massimiliano Allegri and it seems very difficult to imagine how Juventus could invest so much money to fire the Tuscan coach and take on Conte’s significant wages.
Antonio Conte was present at Juventus’ stadium, sparking rumours of a sensational return
4 – GASPERINI AND ATALANTA READY TO SEPARATE
So it’s farewell to Atalanta for Gian Piero Gasperini after seven years of historic results, record points totals and above all Champions League qualifications.
Gasperini will be remembered as the most important coach in the history of the Bergamo club but in a few days the end of his relationship with Atalanta will be confirmed.
Different visions of the future, strained relations with the club’s top brass and a less than idyllic relationship with some of the squad’s most influential players are negative aspects which have convinced the 65-year-old to leave.
Gasperini has achieved exceptional results in Bergamo which will be difficult to emulate but at the moment the ideal conditions do not exist to continue the manager-club relationship that began seven summers ago.
Roma, if they separate from Mourinho, and Genoa would be clubs potentially interesting in courting him, and his future will certainly be in Serie A, albeit it is unlikely he will move to one of the very top clubs.
Gian Piero Gasperini has been heavily linked with a move away from Atalanta this summer
5 – LECCE ACHIEVE SALVATION FROM 24 YARDS
Lecce has mathematically secured salvation, staying up in Serie A, after two 12-yard interventions, one against and one for, just 90 minutes before the end of the campaign.
Goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone, on loan from Sampdoria, made a brilliant save from Christian Gytkjaer of Monza in the 84th minute and in the 11th minute of second-half stoppage time, Lorenzo Colombo scored the decisive penalty that sealed a 1-0 win and gives Marco Baroni’s side another year in Serie A.
A magical match in which the hugely inconsistent Falcone, stopped a fundamentally important penalty to fuel the hopes of a team that well beyond the 100th minute achieved safety that in December seemed impossible to achieve.
Lecce’s achievement is above all a victory for sporting director Pantaleo Corvino and coach Baroni who have never lost faith in their team.
All the negative periods have been overcome and the excellent defence of Barcelona loanee Samuel Umtiti and Federico Baschirotto has created the solidity to maintain a place among the top tier of Italian football clubs.
Lecce striker Lorenzo Colombo scored a crucial penalty against Monza to help his side stay up
6 – GIROUD IS AN IMMENSE PLAYER
If they could clone him, football would probably benefit from a fantastic striker like AC Milan’s Olivier Giroud for another 20 years.
The French striker sent Juventus defenders Gleison Bremer and Federico Gatti into a tailspin, managing to score a fantastic goal of strength and precision, a header that went past goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny like a poisonous arrow.
Despite being nearly 37 years old, he has played 46 games in all competitions this season for Milan, proving to be a physically resilient player.
The main problem for the Rossoneri is understanding how best to manage his workload next campaign, which may well be more difficult for the Frenchman.
This season’s transfers have been unsuccessful and last summer’s signing Divock Origi has not be able to displace the No 9, who has been forced to play lots of minutes because of fellow veteran Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s injury record.
Milan fans continue to shower him with adulation but they know Giroud, 37 in September, is not eternal and they will need to invest in backup for him for 2023-24.
AC Milan’s Giroud is still top class but the club must invest in a striker to act as cover for him
7 – ALLEGRI’S JUVENTUS WOES CONTINUE
A defeat against AC Milan was predictable but what makes the Juventus fans angry is the poor attitude of the team.
The Allianz Stadium’s boos and whistles against their own team confirms their dissatisfaction towards a team struggling to connect with the fanbase.
Boss Massimiliano Allegri is a skilled leadership figure who knows how to find the right words in every circumstance but the team’s latest disastrous performances seem unjustifiable, especially given his serious management errors.
Against Milan, his lost a great opportunity to demonstrate their desire to grab European football next season by the scruff of their necks.
From Federico Chiesa to Angel Di Maria, from Manuel Locatelli to Bremer, all of them had struggled, demonstrating a clear inferiority compared to Milan’s stars.
The sizeable number of injuries accumulated by Juventus players this season is a further negative element that aggravates the bad judgment of Allegri.
So many Juve players have had muscle problems and it is surprising that a young striker like Vlahovic has suffered so many setbacks due to physical problems after experiencing sensational years in Fiorentina.
Physical preparation is the responsibility of the manager and also for this reason Allegri’s standing at the club is looking increasingly shaky.
Under-pressure manager Massimiliano Allegri’s woes at struggling Juventus continued
8 – LIMPING NAPOLI LOOK TO THE FUTURE
Napoli’s 2-2 draw against Bologna after being 2-0 up demonstrates how Napoli have already set their eyes to the future.
At this moment, club president Aurelio De Laurentiis is forced to manage the requests of several individuals to leave and above all the delicate matter of recruiting a new manager and, in all likelihood, a new sporting director.
The final Serie A matches of the season seem to be an annoyance for Napoli, who want to find a new setup at corporate level before anything else.
The feeling in Italy is that manager Luciano Spalletti would liked to have stayed at the heart of the project but as the weeks went by he understood he was not considered indispensable.
His words, carried by Italian outlet Gazzetto dello Sport, after the Bologna game portray a worn-out relationship with club chiefs.
He said: ‘To build a championship (season) like this you need the participation of all the components and we did very well. De Laurentiis? I don’t comment on his words.’ Now Napoli need to rebuild and after winning the Scudetto, it will be even more difficult to retain it.
Despite winning the title, Napoli dropped points again as they prepare for a summer of change
Aurelio De Laurentiis (right) will part ways with Scudetto-winning Luciano Spalletti (left)
9 – TORINO SHOW THEIR TWO FACES
Torino’s 4-0 win condemned lowly Spezia to a final-day battle to stay up and proved they are capable of playing in Europe.
Boss Ivan Juric has built a winning mentality that allows players to always be aggressive, ready to fight for valuable points in the Serie A standings.
The Spezia victory pushes Juric and Co. to eighth in the standings, just six points behind bitter rivals Juventus, and pushes them to demand a plan to strengthen and sign top players like Nikola Vlasic, on loan from West Ham, next year.
The Croatian coach seems to be the right heir to the charismatic Emiliano Mondonico, who reached the final of the UEFA Cup in 1992 and won the Coppa Italia in 1993.
Torino fans deserve a return to Europe and a finally competitive team that doesn’t just settle for staying up every season. Chairman Urbano Cairo must build a team that can challenge for a Europa League spot now to make the most of this platform.
Torino’s 4-0 thrashing of Spezia proves they can fight for Europa League football next season
10 – FIORILLO FINALLY GETS A SHOT
Salernitana goalkeeper Vincenzo Fiorillo played just his second match in Serie A in six years in a 3-2 home win against Udinese.
Manager Paulo Sousa wanted to reward the former Sampdoria prodigy by granting him a spot in the Serie A side’s starting line-up, leaving Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa on the bench.
Fiorillo was finally able to start after a year and a half in the wilderness. His last appearance in the Italian top flight was a 5-0 defeat against Inter in Salerno in December 2021.
In the penultimate Serie A match of the season, the news of his debut as starting goalkeeper therefore represented a unique opportunity to give playing time to an extremely unfortunate man who until 15 years ago was considered Gianluigi Buffon’s heir by the Italian media.
While Salernitana goalkeeper Vincenzo Fiorillo finally got a start after a nearly 18-month wait