I'll start the discussion for the new season of Serie A which begins this weekend. I found a pretty good preview of the league by Paul Watson at:

http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_ita...lanceguide.html

I'll reproduce it here too for convenience,

ATALANTA
Coach: Luigi Del Neri - A no-nonsense disciplinarian who did a solid job last term and has the knack of making the most out of scant resources.
Last season: 9th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Luca Cigarini - An Azzurrini midfielder produced in the Parma youth system who could provide a crucial injection of flair.
Pre-season: A long string of friendly wins over amateur opposition, but they weren't really tested and the arrival of Christian Vieri angered the fans.
Forecast: Mid-table awaits

BOLOGNA
Coach: Daniele Arrigoni - The 48-year-old tactician impressed at Cagliari in 2004-05, but is still relatively unproven at the highest level.
Last season: 2nd in Serie B
Signing of the summer: Marco Di Vaio - The former Azzurri hitman has gone off the rails over the last couple of years but he has a predator's eye.
Pre-season: The Felsinei earned an impressive draw with AEK Athens and saw off lower League sides with ease while doing just about enough in the market.
Forecast: The Emilia-Romagna outfit should expect a dogfight.

CAGLIARI
Coach: Massimiliano Allegri - A promising young boss but he faces a steep learning curve in his first Serie A season.
Last season: 14th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Robert Acquafresca - It was shrewd to bring the talented striker back for another season on loan. He should hit double figures.
Pre-season: Apart from a poor trip to Portugal, results have been encouraging but there has been a notable lack of investment.
Forecast: The arrival of an inexperienced tactician and a lack of summer spending could lead to a bleak campaign.

CATANIA
Coach: Walter Zenga - The former Inter goalkeeper arrived late last season and guided the Elefanti to a dramatic final-day escape.
Last season: 17th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Pablo Ledesma- An Argentine international midfielder who played over 100 games for Boca Juniors.
Pre-season: The Rossazzurri managed a confidence-boosting string of 10 wins.
Forecast: Zenga will look to lead his men away from the dogfight but the fight for survival could go to the wire again.

CHIEVO
Coach: Beppe Iachini - A novice at the highest level, but he assembled the superb Piacenza side of 2006-07 before leading Chievo to the Serie B title.
Last season: 1st in Serie B
Signing of the summer: Pablo Granoche - The unheralded Uruguayan predator blasted 24 goals for a dull Triestina side last term and could thrive with better service.
Pre-season: The Flying Donkeys started the summer well, beating QPR too, and a flurry of late signings may help but a Coppa Italia exit against Padova was worrying.
Forecast: The Veronese minnows have no shortage of experience in relegation battles and will need to fight tooth and nail once again to stay up.

FIORENTINA
Coach: Cesare Prandelli - Regarded by many as the greatest Coach in Italian football, the loveable former Parma man has built a top-four side from scratch.
Last season: 4th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Alberto Gilardino - He may have struggled horribly at Milan, but Gila is back in the Italy squad and ready for a renaissance.
Pre-season: The Tuscans disappointed in their friendly against Barcelona, but they signed astutely and crucially kept hold of Adrian Mutu.
Forecast: The Gigliati can equal last term's fourth place, but to do any more is a huge ask as they look to juggle a European campaign.

GENOA
Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini - A quiet man of calcio, Gasperini gets on with his work and has led the Grifone back from Serie C with minimal fuss.
Last season: 10th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Ruben Olivera - The former Juventus midfielder has been electrifying in pre-season and has already become a cult figure at Marassi.
Pre-season: Some impressive victories have lifted the fans, while Raffaele Palladino fills the hole left by Marco Borriello.
Forecast: The Rossoblu will push for a UEFA Cup place and won't fall far short.

INTER
Coach: Jose Mourinho - All eyes are on the Special One. The Portuguese mastermind is no stranger to pressure but has no room for error in his Serie A debut.
Last season: 1st in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Amantino Mancini - One of the stars of Roma's Scudetto bid last term, the Brazilian wizard is a vital injection of flair.
Pre-season: Despite a defensive crisis, Jose managed to deliver wins over Benfica, Bayern Munich and Ajax as well as the Italian Super Cup.
Forecast: Inter are the side to beat once again. It's hard to imagine them losing their grip on the title, but the Champions League could remain a step too far.

JUVENTUS
Coach: Claudio Ranieri - The veteran Coach won plaudits for the smooth return to the top last term, but he has to prove that he is capable of winning silverware.
Last season: 3rd in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Amauri - The Palermo marksman was arguably the biggest transfer swoop of the summer and should be a goal machine.
Pre-season: A win over Arsenal and a draw with Manchester United were overshadowed by a thumping in the Trofeo Berlusconi. There are whispers that more should've been done in the market.
Forecast: A harder task for the Old Lady this season. They may have to settle for third place again but European success may ease the feeling of inertia.

LAZIO
Coach: Delio Rossi - A boss with a lot to prove. After leading the Aquile to third place in 2006-07, he nearly lost his job during a dismal 2007-08 campaign.
Last season: 12th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Juan Pablo Carrizo - Better late than never, the Argentine No 1 arrives a year late to end Lazio's goalkeeping woes.
Pre-season: Mixed results in friendlies and a string of adequate signings have given little indication of what lies ahead.
Forecast: Improvement on last season is almost inevitable, but there doesn't seem to be enough quality for a UEFA Cup berth.

LECCE
Coach: Mario Beretta - A survival specialist, Beretta led Siena to comfortable safety last season only to be given the push.
Last season: 3rd in Serie B
Signing of the summer: Daniele Cacia - Undoubtedly talented, Cacia is a proven Serie B scorer and saw what is expected on the big stage at Fiorentina last year.
Pre-season: A worrying lack of activity in the market and a succession of wins over minnows.
Forecast: It is hard to see how the Salentini will stay afloat.

MILAN
Coach: Carlo Ancelotti - Carletto enters his eighth season in the Milan hot seat keen to eradicate the memories of his worst campaign to date.
Last season: 5th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Ronaldinho - He may have gone off the boil in the last 18 months, but Dinho is still a rare talent and just what the Rossoneri needed.
Pre-season: An injury-ravaged side suffered a 5-0 humiliation against Chelsea but destroyed Juventus in the Trofeo Berlusconi. They have signed very well and the late addition of Andriy Shevchenko is an admirable gamble.
Forecast: If an ageing defence doesn't fall apart at the seams, the Diavolo will be second only to Inter and should lift the UEFA Cup.

NAPOLI
Coach: Edy Reja - A close friend of Fabio Capello and a highly respected Coach, Reja has guided the Partenopei back from the abyss of Serie C.
Last season: 8th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Christian Maggio - The wide man enjoyed a breakthrough season at Sampdoria last term and is on the cusp of Azzurri selection.
Pre-season: Powerful performances in Europe seemed to suggest a side in harmony, but the Trofeo Birra Moretti is best forgotten.
Forecast: The battle for a UEFA Cup place will be fierce and the Vesuviani are likely to fall just short again.

PALERMO
Coach: Stefano Colantuono - Sacked and reinstated last season, the unassuming ex-Atalanta man is yet to settle in Serie A.
Last season: 11th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Marco Amelia - Italy's second best goalkeeper has finally escaped Livorno and could stop the steady trickle of goals against.
Pre-season: Defeat against Porogruaro and a Coppa Italia slip-up at the hands of Ravenna caused embarrassment, but the personnel changed greatly and will need time to gel.
Forecast: No longer Amauri plus 10, the Sicilians will fare better without their former talisman and will be there or thereabouts in the UEFA Cup race.

REGGINA
Coach: Nevio Orlandi - Hardly a household name, Orlandi remarkably brought the Amaranto back from the brink when he stepped in last March.
Last season: 16th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Bernardo Corradi - Back from a poor spell in England, the fiery hitman will look to recreate the steady scoring of his Lazio days.
Pre-season: A draw with Gubbio and a defeat against Ancona saw Orlandi admit that his side wasn't good enough but they eased past Grosseto in the Coppa Italia.
Forecast: The Calabrians won't go down without a fight, but they will go down.

ROMA
Coach: Luciano Spalletti - The shiny-headed Tuscan has created an entertaining a highly effective side and is regarded as one of Europe's best.
Last season: 2nd in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Julio Baptista - He's not Adrian Mutu but if he can rediscover the form he showed at Sevilla he will be an asset.
Pre-season: Disastrous. Defeat against Steaua Bucharest and a 5-0 pummeling at Tottenham caused panic as the Giallorossi's transfer campaign never really got started.
Forecast: The only way is down for the Lupi and they may struggle to keep a place in the top four.

SAMPDORIA
Coach: Walter Mazzarri - The ex-Reggina man exudes authority and ended a spell of Blucerchiati underachievement with an impressive 2007-08 campaign.
Last season: 6th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Bruno Fornaroli - The man nicknamed 'The Tuna' was hot property and could bag some vital goals if he adapts to Italian football.
Pre-season: Steady if not spectacular. Samp notched up some confidence-boosting wins and Antonio Cassano looked especially sharp.
Forecast: Last season will be hard to follow but Mazzarri's men are capable of maintaining sixth spot.

SIENA
Coach: Marco Giampaolo - Sacked by Cagliari last year, young tactician Giampaolo has his work cut out to repeat Mario Beretta's efforts with the Robur.
Last season: 13th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Emanuele Calaiò - Frozen out by Edy Reja at Napoli last term, the experienced Sicilian striker could provide a much-needed cutting edge.
Pre-season: Giampaolo's men were booed off after a stalemate with Salernitana, they lost to Ascoli, drew with Cittadella and fell to Sampdoria.
Forecast: It's a return to nail biting for the Siena faithful and Giampaolo may not have what it takes to safeguard their eight-year residency in Serie A.

TORINO
Coach: Gianni De Biasi - The well-travelled Coach stepped in to steady the ship with five weeks to go last season.
Last season: 15th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Rolando Bianchi - After his English aberration, Bianchi is back in the peninsula and hungry to repeat his 18-goal haul with Reggina in 2006-07.
Pre-season: The necessary new recruits were eventually delivered but the mood isn't altogether harmonious and a 2-2 draw with Fulham left fans unsure what to think.
Forecast: A relegation battle is almost certain but there should be more fireworks than we saw in a dour 2007-08 campaign.

UDINESE
Coach: Pasquale Marino - The ex-Catania Coach adapted to life at the other end of Serie A quickly and is one of Italy's brightest tacticians.
Last season: 7th in Serie A
Signing of the summer: Marco Motta - An Azzurrini defender with a promising future ahead of him.
Pre-season: A fairly low-key series of games but a 1-0 win over Villarreal was a huge boost. However, the lack of big-name signings is worrying, if not surprising.
Forecast: The Friulani will need their usual suspects to play out of their skins and could drop into mid-table.

I tend to agree with the writer's view that Inter, Milan and Juve are the three leading title contenders. Roma have a big whole to fill with Mancini leaving and what is worth he's going to a title rival Inter. Roma are signing Jeremy Menez from Monaco, a young withdrawn forward who is a good prospect but to think he'll become a major contributor in his first seaosn is Italy is ambitious.

Milan have signed Andrei Shechenko and Phillipe Senderos on loan for the season. If Shevchenko can shake off his Chelsea form then he will be an excellent recruit. I'm less certain about Senderos, he's error prone. I still am concerned about Milan's goalkeeping and defense.

It is difficult to find any weaknesses with Inter. They're deep and talented and in Mourinho have a new coach with a wonderful track record. Maybe Mourinho will have some trouble adjusting to Serie A? That, injuries at centerback and Vieira's aging seem the only real questions about this team.

Amauri is I think a great acquisition for Juventus and with Trezeguet, Del Piero and Giovinco they'll make for a dynamite attack. I wonder if Nedved has anything left in the tank in his final season?

I really like Napoli's team and keeping Hamsik is a big lift for them but as the linked article I provided also states, Christian Maggio is a very good signing. The Argentinian forwards Lavezzi and Denis should provide goals. I think Napoli have a legitimate chance to challenge for European honors.

I too feel those three are the title contenders. Roma have had a good run and can play some nice football but losing Mancini will hurt them. I also think in terms of depth, Roma can not match Inter, Milan and Juventus.

Everyone will be gunning for Inter this year and on paper they look the best placed to win once more. Today they loaned David Suazo to Benfica so that should cut down some of their congestion at forward but with all the injuries to Cordoba and Samuel and with Materazzi becoming more fragile in his old age, you do wonder about Inter's defensive solidity. Burdisso is not a guy to anchor your defense if you want stability back there.

I don't get Milan's acquisition of Senderos. What is he going to add? Shevchenko, like Ronaldinho, is a gamble. If they reproduce their form of old then Milan will be good. If they can't then Milan will be very dependent on Kaka doing it all in attack.

Maybe I am biased but I like Juventus' team. Amauri is a wonderful signing and will compliment Trezeguet and Del Piero. Nedved will provide leadership but he can take a more secondary role this season with Camoranesi, Marchisio or Giovinco buzzing around in attacking midfield positions. Then place Sissoko and Poulsen in the center of midfield in front of Chiellini and Mellberg (or Andrade when back from injury) and just dare the opponents to break through that! There is I think a lot for Juventus to look forward to this season.

Fiorentina will still be a tricky opponent and will go as far as Mutu takes them, and Sampdoria, Udinese and Napoli should all be pretty good this year too. I get a feeling Genoa may also surprise.

My league predictions:

Scudetto: Inter
Other Champions League: Juventus, Roma, Milan
UEFA: Napoli, Udinese
Relegated: Reggina, Lecce, Chievo

I think you guys are unnecessarily writing Roma off. They'll be good again this yera. Mancini wasn't as influential last season as he had been so I don't think his departure will be as great a loss as some here are making it out to be. Vucinic and Totti are still the offensive hopes and that may be their biggest weakness but they'll be very competitive. more so than an aging Milan.

Inter will win it, they have the best talent and Mourinho knows how to win league titles. They may not be pretty but will grind out wins.

libero, I too think Juve will be good but I am not sure they are deep enough for playing in Europe and winning the scudetto.

This is the schedule for the opening week of Serie A:

Playing on Saturday (GMT)
Udinese v Palermo (1600)
Sampdoria v Inter Milan (1830)

Playing on Sunday
AC Milan v Bologna (1300)
AS Roma v Napoli (1300)
Atalanta Bergamo v Siena (1300)
Cagliari v Lazio (1300)
Catania v Genoa (1300)
Chievo Verona v Reggina (1300)
Torino v Lecce (1300)
Fiorentina v Juventus (1830)

A lot of very good opening week matchups. Not what you ordinarily expect on the first week. The top teams will all be tested early.

Inter may not be the most aesthetically beautiful team to watch with Mourinho in charge, but he'll provide plenty of media soundbites to make up for that!

With the Serie A title consistently carved up between Milan and Turin, what I like to keep an eye on are the performances of teams from Italy's South. This year there are six teams: Palermo, Catania, Cagliari, Reggina, Leece and of course Napoli.

Throw Roma and Lazio into the equation, and it means that eight teams are from outside the Northern power base of Italian football. That has to be a good thing for the game as a whole.

If I remember correctly, a few years ago there was a real danger that no teams south of Rome would be playing in Serie A. I read the Tim Parks book, 'A Season With Verona', and found it fascinating to see how the North/South divide in Italy is expressed through football.

I haven't been to Italy yet, but my wife has and she can't understand my fixation with the south of the country! :P

South American players have loved playing in the south of Italy because it reminded them of back home!

I think libero makes a good point, Milan have made a gamble with Shevchenko and Ronaldinho. The payoff if they come through is big but if they don't cut it then Milan could be in trouble.

After Napoli and Genoa last season, it is good to see Bologna this year return to Serie A.

Impressive win for Udinese 3-1 over Palermo with a pair of goals from Antonio DiNatale and one headed goal from Gokhan Inler. To follow up on historyman's storyline about smaller clubs, I like that Udinese were able to keep both Dinatale and Quagliarella depsite offers from home and baraod from bigger clubs for them.

Inter drew 1-1 with Sampdoria in Genoa. A fair result I thought, Ibrahimovic with a mishit shot for the Inter goal but the 2nd half was controlled by Sampdoria and they eventually got their reward. So Mourinho due to injuries in defense played Esteban Cambiasso at centerback! He did all right there but it sounds like Mourinho is trying to make Cambiasso into what Essien was for his Chelsea team.

Milan lost 2-1 to Bologna but to be fair I thought Milan played pretty well. Ronaldinho looked good and crossed for Ambrosini's header and throughout the game he was creating danger. Shevchenko had a certain goal stopped by Antonioli who played extremely well in goal for Bologna. Di Vaio was a real threat for Bologna on the counter but it was Francesco Valiani's long shot which won the game.

Milan created a lot of goal scoring opportunities but could not put more than the one goal away. But overall I liked how they played, quick, dynamic play there is the potentia;l for good thinsg with this team.

Here is a review of the first week of play:

http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=reu-...uters&type=lgns

The big score was Lazio's 4-1 win over Cagliari. It was 1-0 Cagliari when they went down a man and Lazio took over. Fiorentina scored late to tie Juve and Napoli did well to leave Rome with a draw at Roma. Udinese, as rosarino wrote, were quite good in beating Palermo.

Alberto Gilardino with a nice turn and goal in the final minute to earn Fiorentina a tie with Juventus. But overall it was a typical early season game between the two, somewhat sloppy passing by both clubs. I caught some of Milan's game and as Yogi says, it was a pretty good game, played at a high pace. Ronaldinho looked good for Milan but when you let your opponent off by not putting away your chances, you run a risk and Bologna made them pay.

I too was amazed to see Cambiasso playing centerback for Inter but he held his own there. I enjoyed both of DiNatale's goals for Udinese.

I guess Jose Mourinho was not satisfied with Inter's wing play against Sampdoria as today he signed Ricardo Quaresma from Porto. You have to think this will limit Luis Figo's minutes at the club.

Inter have been after Quaresma for some time so I am not all that surprised by his sale today. What is surpriisng to me is from Porto's perspective they've just lost one of their top players on the final day of the transfer season. It won't be easy filling his shoes there. As for Inter, well Quaresma, Figo and Mancini can each play on either wing so that should give Mourinho a lot of flexibility.

Well it didn't take long for Palermo's president Zamparini to act, he's already fired Stefano Colantuono as the club's manager and replaced him with the much traveled Davide Ballardini. All this after one week of play!

Napoli's "fans" wrecked some train cars on their trip to Rome and consequently the club's fans are now banned for the season from attending away matches! Milan's fans were also banned from their next game at Genoa, where the two sets of supporters have a history and Fiorentina's fans were banned for a match as well but none were treated as severely as Napoli's.

And portions of Napoli's stadium will be closed to home fans through October as a further measure to curb the violence.

You milanistas will be without Gennaro Gattuso for a month as he got hurt while with the Azzurri. With Flamini's arrival I don't think Gattuso's absence will be felt as much.

The renewal of Serie A after the international break and before Champions League play gets started again,

Playing on Saturday
Palermo v AS Roma (1600)
Inter Milan v Catania (1830)

Playing on Sunday
Bologna v Atalanta Bergamo (1300)
Genoa v AC Milan (1300)
Lazio v Sampdoria (1300)
Lecce v Chievo Verona (1300)
Napoli v Fiorentina (1300)
Reggina v Torino (1300)
Siena v Cagliari (1300)
Juventus v Udinese (1830)

A couple of games attract your attention- Palermo-Roma; Napoli-Fiorentina, Genoa-Milan and Juventus-Udinese. Caught in between a week full of national team games and enxt week's Champions League and UEFA matches, this weekend's league schedule may get lost in the shuffle. But these points at stake are the same as any other week's and it will be interetsing to see if some teams are caught looking ahead to their European matches or are shorthande dbecause of international duty?

I was just reading in the Spanish forum that a lot of the South American players, because they played their World Cup matches late Wednesday, early Thursday morning European time, won't be able to play this weekend with their clubs. Add in what rosarino notes, the European club matches next week and I would imagine in Italy the same situation will occur and a lot of South American players may end up sitting this weekend. That should make prognosticating this weekend's game even harder.

It is week 2 so Palermo are of course debuting a new manager! They play Roma where Totti is once again injured. These last few seasons he just seems to be constantly getting hurt.

Mixed results for the Serie A teams in the Champions League and UEFA Cup, Inter beat Catania 2-1 with the game winner a goal which may, or may not have crossed the line, Roma lost 3-1 to Palermo, Juve defeated Udinese 1-0 with an Amauri goal, Fiorentina lost 2-1 to Napoli and Genoa beat Milan 2-0. These teams probably were caught looking ahead but it is good for the league to at least early in the season have some parity before the cream starts rising to the top.

Not a good day for Paolo Maldini, he got caught ball watching on Genoa's first goal then tripped Diego Milito late in the match for the penalty which Milito converted for Genoa's 2nd goal. The great Maldini is finally starting to show his age.

Unfortunately this is true, it makes you think that maybe Maldini should have hung up the boots last year. He was slow to react all game long. I will remain hopeful, however, that this was just a poor game from him and not the start of a trend. I also wish Nesta would return soon. Alexandre Pato came off the bench and nearly tied it up but Genoa's goalie Rubinho cut off his angle well and stopped it. Neither Ronaldinho nor Shevchenko had much influence on this game and both were substituted off after 45 minutes as Milan had a game it would like to forget.

If there was any consolation in a weekend where Milan looked so bad and where Inter won with a goal which should not have counted, it was that Roma not only lost but were controlled by Palermo! :P

haha, well said raconteur! Milan did look bad and neither Ronaldinho nor Shevchenko had any effect on the game. Kaka has an excuse as this was his first game back after surgery but with the offense not being productive, Milan will struggle as their defense is not what it once was. And sadly Maldini is showing his age as Mr. Pither writes. Hopefully he still will have enough in his tank to be an effective defender at least as a part timer. If/when Nesta returns then Maldini will have less asked of him.

Pirlo will be out for awhile now with Milan, Trezeguet just had knee surgery and will be out for a month or two with Juve while Inter's Sulley Muntari was suspended for 3 games for sticking his hand in the face of an opponent last week (a little harsh suspension in my opinion.)

This week's schedule:

Playing on Saturday (GMT)
Catania v Atalanta Bergamo (1600)
AS Roma v Reggina (1830)

Playing on Sunday
Cagliari v Juventus (1300)
Fiorentina v Bologna (1300)
Lecce v Siena (1300)
Palermo v Genoa (1300)
Sampdoria v Chievo Verona (1300)
Torino v Inter Milan (1300)
Udinese v Napoli (1300)
AC Milan v Lazio (1830)

Roma still haven't won a game this season but home to Reggina should be their opportunity. Palermo-Genoa is a matchup of two teams who had big wins last week against Roma and Milan. This could be a game which could propel the winner into an early season contender. Inter are at Torino while Milan, hurting after their slwo start and now compounded with Pirlo's injury, host undefeated Lazio. The knifes may eb sharpening if Ancelotti doesn't lead Milan to a win in that one.

Both Pirlo and Trezeguet are expected to be out for two months. Juve with Amauri and Iaquinta should have players to cover Trezeguet's absence. As for Milan, they'll miss Pirlo's cretaivity from deep as none of Ambrosini, Flamini or Gattuso can match that. I am wondering if Seedorf may drop deeper to add more passing ability to the team?

Turns out Trezeguet may miss 4 months! But Amauri is scoring for Juve, who won 1-0 this weekend. Inter lead on goal difference from Juve after 3 games after winning 3-1 as Mancini had an excellent game. Mancini's old team Roma won their first game of the year over helpless Reggina 3-0. But the game which delighted me was Milan's 4-1 win over previously unbeaten Lazio! A pair of beauitful long range shots from Zambrotta and Kaka but I thought it was Seedorf who really played well. Ancelotti played Borriello and Pato together at forward with Kaka behind them and Seedorf, Ambrosini and Gattuso in midfield. It proved a very effective formation and I imagine we'll see it again very soon. Ronaldinho had to be content coming in as a 2nd half sub for Pato.

Mancini was excellent for Inter over the weekend. This is what Inter were lacking last season in my opinion. Plus in taking Mancini away from Roma, they've strengthened themselves while weakening an opponent.

Milan did look very good against Lazio but we've seen this before form them, mixing some poor perfornaces with a couple of electric ones like yesterday's. That leaves the impression more good things are to come from them but with their age they just don't have the consistency to continue playing that way. I wouldn't be surprised to see Milan going abck to playing a poor match in their enxt game!

Mauro Zarate scored again for Lazio, he's been on fire this season and looking like a great buy for the club.

On Wednesday there will be more league games,

Atalanta v Cagliari, Bologna v Udinese, Chievo v Torino, Genoa v AS Roma, Inter Milan v Lecce, Juventus v Catania, Lazio v Fiorentina, Napoli v Palermo, Reggina v AC Milan, Siena v Sampdoria

Genoa-Roma should be a good game, remember Genoa already beat Milan and now face a Roma team with numerous injuries so I would not be surprised to see a Genoa win. Lazio-Fiorentina is another good matchup but Lazio will need to defend better than they did versus Milan. rosarino is correct though that Zarate is playing well for Lazio and added to Pandev and Rocchi, they now have a very potent attack. Inter, Juve and Milan all have winnable games this week but Juve's injury list grows as now Gianluigi Buffon will be out for a few weeks. Alex Manninger though is a pretty capable backup.

Diego Milito is turning out to be a great signing for Genoa, he scored twice today as Genoa proved Yogi's prediction correct beating Roma 3-1.

Julio Cruz came off the bench to help Inter win 1-0 against Lecce. Juve drew 1-1 with Catania, Napoli beat Palermo and Milan won away from home over Reggina.

De Rossi is such a fool, he got himself sent off for dissent after getting a yellow for a bad tackle. The score at the time was 2-1 for Genoa. Roma did have a tying goal by Panucci wrongly called back for offside but those things happen. De Rossi losing his poise, is a normal occasion but is another sign of his causing his team as much harm as good (he scored the Roma goal heading in a rebound.) But yes Milito is showing to be a good signing for Genoa who are off to a nice start to the new season.

Milan looked good in winning at Reggina, goals by Borriello and Pato. I am liking the addition of Borriello to the starting lineup, he holds the ball up well, moves without the ball and links up with both Kaka and Pato.

That was probably Inter's worst game of the season yet they still won and that is a great sign. I am thinking their minds were on Sunday's Milan derby.

raconteur, I think we all agree De Rossi is a jerk. There just is something about Roma fans that turns me off so I am enjoying their struggles this season! :D

Juventus may have drawn their last match but Ranieri finally gave Giovinco some playing time and he did well, setting up the Juve goal and nearly scoring himself. It was certainly play which should earn him more opportunities. About time Ranieri gave him the chance though!

Just as Borriello starts playing well for Milan he gets hurt so Ancelotti will have to look for alternatives for this weekend's derby against Inter.

The highlight of the weekend is of course the Milan derby,

Playing on Saturday (GMT)
Sampdoria v Juventus (1600)
Fiorentina v Genoa (1830)

Playing on Sunday
AS Roma v Atalanta Bergamo (1300)
Bologna v Napoli (1300)
Catania v Chievo Verona (1300)
Lecce v Cagliari (1300)
Palermo v Reggina (1300)
Torino v Lazio (1300)
Udinese v Siena (1300)
AC Milan v Inter Milan (1830)

As libero mentions, Borriello is out injured just as he is really settling in at Milan. Ancelotti's debate is whether to play Ronaldinho, Shevchenko or move Kaka up to fill Borriello's absence. My guess is Kaka gets the call with Seedorf, Gattuso, Ambrosini and Flamini behind him as Milan look to quash Inter in the midfield. A little surprising to see the derby played so early in the season but this game is always an intriguing one to watch and with Mourinho's arrival at Inter it has become even more attractive.

All lovers of good futbol are happy to see Giovinco getting playing time. I'd like to see him get an extended run in the team.

Fiorentina-Genoa is another good game especially with Genoa off to such a good start. I hope Milito keeps on playing well as Argentina needs to find a legitimate center forward!

I am really disappointed about Boriello's injury but I am looking forward to this game versus Inter. I think rosarino is right and Kaka will be the player who moves forward to fill Boriello's absence as the team will look to control the midfield against Inter. I also think the battle between Zambrotta and Mancini will be a fascinating one but Ibrahimovic's speed and ability to find gaps in the defense is what worries me. Milan's defense will be tested in this game.

I am surprised none of my fellow milanistas have been here to discuss Milan's fine win in the derby della madonnina against Inter. 1-0 was the final with a Ronaldinho header, his first league goal for Milan the difference. Ancelotti went with Ronaldinho and Kaka behind Pato and it worked very well as the three Brazilians but especially Ronaldinho and Kaka put Inter under a lot of pressure. Deserved win in my mind as Milan defended well, didn't give many chances to Inter until the closing stages, and attacked with speed and precision. Seedorf, Gattuso and Ambrosini ran their tails off in midfield and bustled Inter's midfield out of the game.

Lazio now lead the table after a 3-1 win at Torino, Pandev opened the scoring then Zarate scored twice, the last on a penalty. Napoli rested some usual starters to save them for their UEFA game against Benfica but sent German Denis on towards the end and he scored the game winner to defeat Bologna as Napoli are now 2nd in the table! Also continuing to do well are Walter Zenga's Catania, 1-0 winners over Chievo on the weekend.

Roma won 2-0 over Atalanta, Juve played a dull 0-0 tie with Sampdoria, Fiorentina beat Genoa 1-0 in Florence with a nice control and turn by Alberto Gilardino and Udinese keep winning after defeating Siena 2-1.

But Milan won the derby, gave Inter it's first defeat of the season and in my opinion exposed some serious weaknesses with this Inter team.

Not least with their defending on the goal. There were two Inter players standing in front of Kaka, I can understand that if you're one on one with Kaka you might want to be a little circumspect about committing yourself, but when there's two of you it's incredible that they allowed him so much time to stand, weigh up his options and then cross the ball at his leisure. It was a good header but if I know anything about Mourinho I imagine he might have had some choice words to say to his players about being beaten in the air by Ronaldinho!

None of that is Milan's concern though, that was a great win for them.

I agree that Inter looked sloppy and they still have not yet settled in under Jose Mourinho's coaching. But we all know his teams love to grind out wins. But yesterday they couldn't cope with Milan's midfield play and the attacking duo of Kaka and Ronaldinho. I continue to be impressed by the energy Clarence Seedorf has in midfield even well into his 30's.

Lazio are off to a great start but in their only game against a top level opponent, they lost big against Milan so the jury is still out on them. But Zarate's play has been a real revelation and I also like Carrizo in goal.

That lad Zarate looks a really useful player, and was impressive for Birmingham in their abortive attempts to escape the drop last season. In truth I don't think Birmingham knew what to do with him but then that lack of coherence comes with the territory when you're scrambling to avoid relegation. His individual skills were clear and he scored some good goals, so it's nice to see he's been given a more suitable platform to exhibit his talent. I'm not sure how he ended up in Qatar in the first place!

I was away these past few days but watched the replay of the Milan debry and was thrilled with Milan's play. Ronaldinho and Kaka were excellent, the midfield outworked and out thought Inter and the maligned defense stood firm even against Inter's late push. And it is always nice to see Materazzi, even if he was on the bench at the time, get expelled!

After their opening two losses, Milan look to be putting it together now. Inter on the other hand, don't look very lively in midfield and by playing two wingers on either side of Ibrahimovic, I don't think they are getting the best out of Zlatan who does best when he works off of another forward.

You know Yogi Mourinho might have seen the same problem as yesterday against Wrrder Bremen in the Champions League he played with Ibrahimovic and Adriano together from the start with Balotelli playing on a wing. But that trio didn't really play all that well together either. Adriano was the best of the bunch as he was working hard but ran into Naldo and Mertesacker, a pair of defenders as big and as strong as he.

The weekend schedule:

Playing on Saturday
Lazio v Lecce (1600)
Inter Milan v Bologna (1830)

Playing on Sunday
Atalanta Bergamo v Sampdoria (1300)
Chievo Verona v Fiorentina (1300)
Genoa v Napoli (1300)
Juventus v Palermo (1300)
Reggina v Catania (1300)
Siena v AS Roma (1300)
Udinese v Torino (1300)
Cagliari v AC Milan (1830)

Juventus-Palermo and Genoa-Napoli look like the best looking games to me. Giovinco is starting to get playing time and is producing for Juve but ever since Buffon went out the club have not been playing as well. I don't think Manninger has done poorly in his place but at the same time he isn't Buffon and I think the defense doesn't play with the same confidence when Gigi Buffon is missing.

Lazio, Roma, Inter and Milan all have very winnable games this weekend. Raconteur, you and Yogi make a good point about playing Ibrahimovic alone. What will be interetsing is what Mourinho will do this weekend against Bologna. At home this should be a winnable game, the type where you'd expect Mourinho to go for more offensive power but with him you never know what goes through his mind!

I think Mourinho is smart enough to recognize he is isolating Ibrahimovic by playing a 4-3-3- with two wingers on either sid eof him. he did make the correction for the Werder Bremen game so I expect him to do the same this weekend versus Bologna. As rosarino wrote, that is a very winnable game, the type Inter need to get back on track.

For Milan, we travel to bottom placed Cagliari but despite their troubles I am always apprehensive about traveling to play in Sardegna. Consistency is what Milan have lacked recently, this would be a great time to start to show this season's team can overcome the lack of consistency of the past.

Great point rosarino about Buffon and his leadership at the back. Manninger is a pretty good backup but Juve have missed Buffon's presence.

Can Zarate keep on scoring?