Aiming for higher targets

Sampdoria have a relatively good Serie A season behind them, but Walter Novellino's era at the club is now over after five eventful years.

New Sampdoria coach Walter Mazzarri will rue the departure of prolific Italy international striker Fabio Quagliarella this summer but is still hopeful of having enough quality in his squad to take the Blucerchiati a step higher than his more illustrious predecessor.

Udinese and Siena never really got going in 2006/07. Theirs was indeed a disappointing season.

New coaches have now been appointed at the helm of these two teams.

However, it still remains to be seen whether the new leadership will be inspiring enough to steer Udinese and Siena to better finishes come next May.

Sampdoria, who play Croatian side Hajduk Split in the UEFA Cup second qualifying round next week, never really showed their true potential in the last two years and, perhaps, this was one of the major factors that brought to an end Novellino's stint at the Genoa-based club.

If two years ago Sampdoria had made sure of safety only towards the end of the campaign, the same cannot be said of last season.

They played some entertaining football on their way to a trouble-free mid-table spot.

Sampdoria climbed away from the drop zone soon after the first weeks of the championship, albeit they were never consistent enough to make a realistic challenge for a UEFA Cup berth.

Qualification to the Intertoto Cup represented a consolation prize for a team without very high ambitions.

The departure of Quagliarella, together with Novellino's switch to his 'first love' Torino, represent two big losses for Sampdoria.

Vincenzo Montella, Claudio Bellucci and Andrea Caracciolo were signed to bolster Sampdoria's forward line, a department which in these last few years fared badly and let the team down on many an occasion.

Montella's headline-grabbing return to Samp is good news for the supporters because the ex-Roma and Fulham hit-man has the skills and guile to adequately replace Quagliarella, now at Udinese.

Bellucci had a superb season with Bologna in Serie B. No doubt, he will be a valuable addition to the team.

Lanky striker Caracciolo, on the contrary, is coming from a very disappointing spell with Palermo and is eager to prove that he is far from finished.

Otherwise, Sampdoria remained practically unchanged apart from Stefano Lucchini who was signed from Empoli to add to Mazzarri's options at the back.

Utility players Paolo Sammarco and Hugo Campagnaro will enhance the team's options in midfield and in defence.

All in all, Sampdoria have the potential to do better than last season. It will not be easy for them to stay in the top positions of the standings though because the competition is stiff.

But, at least, they look strong enough to improve on their 2006/07 showing and, at the same time, continue to produce the entertaining football they are so renowned for.

Udinese have been among the biggest under-achievers in the Serie. Ever since Luciano Spalletti quit the club to join Roma, the northeasterners failed miserably to settle under a new coach.

Serse Cosmi, Loris Dominissini, Nestor Sensini, Giovanni Galeone and Alberto Malesani all failed to leave their mark.

For this reason, club supremo Giampaolo Pozzo had to hire another new coach this summer - Pasquale Marino, formerly of Catania.

The capture of Quagliarella underlines Pozzo's intentions to bring European football back to the Friuli stadium. However, Udinese have also lost the services of five key players - Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Cesare Natali (Torino), Morgan De Sanctis (Sevilla), Barreto (Treviso) and Sulley Muntari (Portsmouth).

Finding suitable replacements will be no easy task for Marino.

Three-man attack

Udinese's forte lies in their deadly three-man attack - Antonio Di Natale and Quagliarella in support of the highly-rated Floro Flores. The latter is coming from an exciting stint with Serie B outfit Arezzo, where he scored 28 goals in two years.

Udinese may now have less skill and resources within their squad but if Marino, who is thought to be a good motivator, can get the best out of his players, then one could tip the Friulani to rank among the surprise packages of the new season.

Also, much will depend on the scoring form of Quagliarella.

Last season, Siena came within a whisker from going down to Serie B and only made sure of their top-flight status in the last few weeks of the season.

This time, they look to have a more valid squad, good enough to ensure Serie A survival much earlier in the campaign.

Andrea Mandorlini, the former Inter defender, will also hope to do better than the last time he was in charge of a Serie A outfit - Atalanta in 2004/05.

Others reckon Siena's current squad still needs strengthening if they are to avoid playing with fire at the crucial stages of the season.

Peru international striker Andres Mendoza is on the verge of signing for Siena but Simone Inzaghi (Lazio) and Christian Riganò (Messina) are also being linked with a possible move to Tuscany.