Morgan in the driving seat

European Leagues / Alsy / 09 August 2007 / Leave a Comment

Alsy says you can't really look beyond Inter for Serie A glory

You'll struggle to find any Italians wishing to champion British cuisine as the world's best and you'll find even fewer willing to bet against Internazionale winning Serie A this season. Any attempt to place the top three has to start with the Nerazzurri (2.38).

With fines, demotions and docked points consigned to the annuls of history, emotions will be running high as the "grand old lady" Juventus resume hostilities against AC Milan, Roma and Inter. An even playing field in Serie A once more..? Don't be fooled. Club executives may be steering clear of phoning referees of late but on the pitch the gap between Inter and the chasing pack hasn't been this wide in decades.

Roberto Mancini has added to a formidable squad overflowing with international stars. Samuel and Materazzi perform an impressive 'bad cop, bad cop' routine at the back while poaching Ibrahimovic and Vieira from Juventus last year proved a master stroke of carpet-bagging. Inter's new signings include the impressive David Suazo up front alongside Crespo, Adriano, Cruz and Ibrahimovic. No other strike force in Serie A comes close.

Sibling rivalry suggests that Milan (3.05) is best positioned to mount a serious challenge. They're accustomed to dominating their local rivals but while their Champions League victory stole Inter's spotlight their pre-season consisted of complaining that they couldn't afford to buy back Shevchenko and signing Brazilian boy-wonder, Alexandre Pato. Anyone waiting to see this kid crushed under the weight of being hailed the, "next Pele", may have to wait until January 2008 but there's plenty more Brazilians to watch in the shape of Cafu, Kaka and Ronaldo.

The Rossoneri have an aging but solid back four but Nesta's retirement from the national team should benefit their title push. Their midfield is hugely talented but their strikers will need to improve to secure second spot. Gilardino scored 12 goals in Serie A last season from 30 appearances. A decent haul but nowhere near the strike-rate of Shevchenko in Milan colours while Ronaldo, Inzaghi and Oliveira only scored 12 between them from 60 appearances last year.

Milan does have one Brazilian who isn't too old, inexperienced or fat. Kaka remains the world's best player and if he, and other key players, maintains fitness then Milan looks the strongest of the chasing pack.

Roma (10.5) are a side that has no trouble scoring but their away form was the real scandal in Italian football last year. Totti grabbed the Golden Boot but they lost away from home five times last season while finishing second. Unlike Milan, Lazio and Fiorentina, Roma had no point deduction to contend with but the final gap was so wide Inter almost lapped them finishing a staggering 22pts ahead. Roma have made some decent signings in pre-season, notably Ludovic Giuly from Barcelona, but both Milan sides should be too strong for them.

Juventus (9.2) will be expected to mount a strong challenge but they'll need to acclimatise at this level once more. Forced to sell before dropping into Serie B, many of Juve's best former players now wear the colours of their main rivals. If you're looking for an outside bet for third place then a resurgent Fiorentina offer much better value than Juventus. The old lady of Italian football needs to rest up for a season.