Alessandro Del Piero
“There’s an advert on television at the moment asking what information overload has done to us. If you haven’t seen it already, two women are having lunch together in what appears to be a fashionable restaurant when a question from one of the pair causes her friend to apparently short-circuit and begin spewing random irrelevant facts with alarming speed, drawing the bemused attention of the other restaurant-goers and embarrassing her companion. The advert then poses its key, pertinent question, before somewhat confusingly plugging a new search engine on this here internet.” (Who ate all the Pies)

“After Claudio Ranieri was handed a vote of confidence, Roma could not have asked for a more difficult opponent than Serie A leaders and European champions Inter. Roma dropped into the relegation zone with just two points in four league games after Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat to Brescia, while the Nerazzurri claimed their third straight win with a 4-0 thumping of Bari. The result lifted them to the top of the standings, one point clear of Chievo and Brescia.” (ESPN)

Inter Milan (Internazionale) 4-0 Bari – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – Serie A
(The 90th Minute)

Lazio 1-1 AC Milan – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – Serie A
(The 90th Mniute)

“One of the world’s finest football leagues, the Italian Serie A is underway and this season all eyes will once again focus on whether reigning league champions Inter Milan can finally be dethroned. The Nerazurri have been collecting the Scudetto for five seasons in a row, albeit the first title from that five year run was pretty much a gift because of the Calciopoli scandal. Still, Inter’s domination has been so powerful that only last season were we finally witness to an interesting finish in the league.” (Just Football)

“Last week Barcelona sold their enigmatic Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Milan in a transfer that was astonishing not only because it came just 12 months after “Ibra” had moved to the Camp Nou, but also because the price was considerably lower than the amount the Catalans had paid to Inter for the mercurial forward. Although his performances in the blaugrana shirt had been a bit hit-and-miss, Ibrahimovic was by no means a complete failure, having scored 21 goals in all competitions, averaging a goal every other game in La Liga, where he helped Barcelona retain their title.” (The Swiss Ramble)

“This the debut season of Italian football’s Tessera del Tifoso, or fans’ ID card scheme. There have been protests about the card ever since it was first mooted and plenty more have been made in the last few weeks. During the season opener at the Stadio Olimpico, a large group of Roma’s ultras remained outside the stadium, leaving an entire block of the usually chock-full Curva Sud glaringly empty. At the Serie B game between Empoli and Pescara I saw a number of the home side’s ultras choosing not to enter the ground, but instead setting up a Subbuteo table outside.” (WSC)

“Serie A 2010-11 club by club previews. Get ready for the big kick off as we give you a unique lowdown on all 20 Serie A teams. (Football Italia)

Tactical battles await in Serie A
“A valuable lesson was learned by the Italian FA (FIGC) during the World Cup in June: when things go wrong, when the national tem performs lousily and has a worrying lack of young players ready to step up and replace tired veterans, do what all authorities seem to do in a crisis – panic.” (ESPN)

“‘Everything must change so that everything can stay the same,’ Italian novelist Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa wrote in The Leopard. The famous phrase is often used to describe the way cosmetic change is used to cover a lack of real reform in Italy’s political, economic and social spheres, but it may also be applicable to the country’s top-flight football this season. It’s all change at the big clubs, with three of the big four starting the campaign with new coaches. Nevertheless, the expectation is that we’ll have the same story of the last four seasons since the Calciopoli scandal shook things up, with Inter proving too good for the other contenders.” (WSC)

“The gloomy headlines are as familiar to followers of Serie A as the six o’clock alarm to Phil Connors during a stay in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Italian football is not so much trapped in groundhog day as groundhog season, but the editorials are just as repetitive. Season ticket sales are down and marquee names have left. There’s violence in the stands and on the pitch. Debt levels are mounting and Serie A’s clubs are at loggerheads with the national federation.” (Guardian)

“Premier League, Premier League, Premier League….but where did last season’s Champions League winners come from? Italy of course. With the new Serie A season upon us, Rocco Cammisola looks at what we can expect. From afar it would appear that Serie A’s title race has been – and will be – a foregone conclusion this season. Inter have taken the past five Serie A titles, including the title awarded to them following the Calciopoli scandal, under 2 different managers. But last year’s campaign had its fair share of twists and turns to keep us captivated.” (In Bed with Maradona – Part 1), (In Bed with Maradona – Part 2)

“Another Serie A season is on the horizon. Will Inter maintain their grip on the domestic stage? Can Milan make a serious challenge? Are Juventus a force to be reckoned with once more? Could Roma surprise yet again? Get ready for the new campaign with our special Serie A fixtures PDF.” (Football Italia)

Mario Balotelli“If you are wondering what the fuss is all about over Mario Balotelli, you probably have not been paying too much attention to Italian soccer in the past three seasons. Despite being left out – no, make that ignored – by Marcello Lippi for the World Cup, Balotelli is probably Italy’s most exciting young talent at the moment and a certain member of new Azzurri coach Cesare Prandelli’s squads for the upcoming Euro 2012 qualifiers.” (ESPN)

“Giancarlo Rinaldi on how the big four in Serie A – Inter, Milan, Juventus and Roma – are preparing for the new campaign. Every pre-season is always packed with clubs getting used to new Coaches, players and tactics. Between friendly matches and training sessions there is an awful lot to be taken on board. This year, perhaps more than any other, the whole of Serie A seems to be on a crash course just to be ready for when the real hostilities begin.” (Football Italia)

“On 27 May, the first ever Supporters’ Trust in Serie A was formally established in Rome, with a ‘Constitutional Assembly’ convened to agree the structures and purpose of the new association whose ultimate objective is fan ownership at AS Roma. After the morning meeting, where 83 supporters symbolically assembled to approve the Statute, the paperwork for the ‘MyRoma’ association was registered with the notary and the organisation was finally operational. Months of hard-work, planning, publicity and dialogue have led up to this point: now it’s time to see how fans will react.” (Pitch Invasion)

“Yesterday was an important day in Italian Football Culture, as Serie A’s first Supporters Trust – Azionariato Popolare AS Roma – was formed, as the first attempt to run a football club by the fans in Italy. Azionariato Popolare AS Roma are the second Trust to be formed it Italy, after Società Cooperativa Modena Sport Club was formed in 2008, by fans of Serie B Modena.” (twohundredpercent)

“The third of our end of season awards, in association with Castrol Rankings, is the Serie A Team of the Season. The formation of 4-2-1-3 worked for Jose Mourinho and Inter Milan as they won the title, so let’s stick with that.” (ESPN)