Juve defender Andrea Barzagli loses his balance in an attempt to stop Duvan Zapata.Juve defender Andrea Barzagli loses his balance in an attempt to stop Duvan Zapata.

What a start we had to the 2015/16 Serie A!

Juventus lost at their own backyard to Udinese and ten-man Milan conceded a goal in each half to go down 2-0 in Florence as title contenders Napoli did even worse and lost by the odd goal in three away to the unfancied Sassuolo.

In the season’s curtain-raiser, Roma came from a goal down to share the spoils with modest Verona 1-1 at the Bentegodi stadium and on Sunday Inter needed a stoppage-time Stevan Jovetic goal to bring down Atalanta’s stiff resistance at the San Siro.

As expected, all three newcomers – Carpi, Frosinone and Empoli – finished on the losing end last weekend.

For Carpi and Frosinone, the setbacks to Sampdoria and Torino represented their debuts in the top flight.

Juve have an ideal opportunity to bounce back next weekend as they travel to Roma in what promises to be a clash of the titans.

The champions need to get their act together quickly and try to conquer the Olimpico to deal Roma an early blow to their title aspirations.

Roma have problems of their own as new signings Salah and Edin Dzeko are far from settled in their new environs.

Coach Rudi Garcia, in his third season in charge of Roma, has already come under a lot of criticism for having left veteran striker Francesco Totti out of Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Andrea Mandorlini’s Verona.

If that game is anything to go by, it seems that Roma are still two to three players short of being genuine title contenders. Garcia’s side are still missing some players who can help them win even on their off day.

Moreover, the pressure Roma’s demanding supporters exert on their players does not help.

This year, Roma need to win the Serie A or at least be involved in the title race until the last few weeks of the campaign.

Also, one expects Roma to have a longer run in the Champions League than the previous year.

Sassuolo cruised to their first ever home win against Napoli at the third time of asking.

Napoli were off to a flying start as they took a third-minute lead through Marek Hamsik.

However, a goal in each half enabled Sassuolo to collect all three points at stake.

Napoli may boast a formidable forward line but their defence leaves much to be desired. If they fail to make at least one other quality signing to bolster their rearguard before next Monday’s transfer deadline, their chances of winning their first scudetto since 1990 will be next to nothing.

Sunday’s upset proved one important thing – Napoli, now under the charge of new coach Maurizio Sarri, have not yet learned from the mistakes of the past and that they are still prone to dropping valuable points against lower-table opponents.

On Sunday evening, Fiorentina proved too hot for Milan to handle.

The Viola had an auspicious pre-season under new coach Paulo Sousa and as such the fine win and performance against Milan came as no surprise.

Fiorentina were immediately ranked among the outsiders for the league title. They were streets ahead of Milan and the 2-0 success was a just result.

Works-in-progress

Milan are still a works-in-progress as new coach Sinisa Mihajlovic faces a race against time to transform the Rossoneri into genuine title contenders. Their upcoming fixture is a winnable home game against Empoli.

At the San Siro, Inter left it very late to beat a stubborn Atalanta.

Inter, like Milan, have been very active on the transfer market. As such, coach Roberto Mancini needs time to get his team functioning like a unit. The pressure to do well is there and this may have nasty effects especially if the fans become impatient.

Inter will cross swords with Carpi on Sunday so they have a good opportunity to stay top of the table with maximum points.

Last weekend’s results give an indication that unlike previous years we’re in for a more balanced Serie A. Juventus are still strong, albeit they have lost three key players in Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and Carlos Tevez.

One expects Inter and Milan to go through an initial bumpy period of transition until the new players settle. Roma will be there as well, though one believes that they are still not equipped enough to halt their 15-year wait for the scudetto.

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