The 2024-25 Serie A season is set to kick-start on Saturday 17 August with Inter Milan who were crowned the 2023-24 Italian Serie A champions for the 20th time and earned themselves a second golden star while Frosinone, Sassuolo, and Salernitana could not survive the drop.
This season promises to be action-packed following a number of significant signings that teams have been making during the transfer window.
Let’s dive into the preview of the opening round of matches:
Saturday 17 August
44/10 Genoa | Draw 28/10 | Inter Milan 6/10
Genoa will have their hands full when they open their 2024-25 campaign against the reigning champions. This will be a good chance to test the strength of their squad with the strongest team in the league following an impressive pre-season which saw them attaining four victories and experiencing one loss in their five friendly bouts.
Simone Inzaghi’s side were denied victory by Lesley Ugochukwu’s 90th-minute equalizer in their 1-1 draw against Chelsea this past Sunday. They will be aiming to relive last season’s stellar campaign where they lifted the Scudetto with 94 points, 19 points clear of their cross-town rivals AC Milan. Lautaro Martinez who is fresh from lifting the COPA America with Argentina scored 24 league goals last season and is expected to continue where he left off given his performance at the Copa where he netted five goals in six matches. Bet on Inter to win.
43/20 Parma | Draw 9/4 | Fiorentina 5/4
Parma is one of the three clubs that got promoted into the Italian topflight after finishing at the top of Serie B with 76 points after securing 21 victories, 13 draws, and only four losses. They return to the Serie A after a three-year absence and their first test will be against Fiorentina, a side that has been making significant improvement over the past seasons.
The Serie B champions dispatched Atalanta 4-1 in a friendly match but failed to build from that when they were eliminated by second-tier side Palermo who edged them 1-0.
On the other hand, Fiorentina were a point away from qualifying for continental competition after finishing in the eighth position with 60 points, five points more than their 56 points in the 2022-23 season. Fiorentina to overpower Parma.
7/10 AC Milan | Draw 5/2 | Torino 39/10
Redemption will be on the cards for the home side when they take on Torino, who thrashed them 3-1 in the second-last game of the 2023-24 season. The acquisition of Spanish international Alvaro Morato who was instrumental in his country winning the EURO 2024 shows that they are determined to clinch the league trophy this season. Morata is expected to close the gap left by veteran striker Oliver Giroud who is heading to America.
Torino eased past Cosenza 2-0 thanks to goals from Michele Camporese who scored an own goal in the first minute and Duvan Zapata in the 84th minute to advance into the next round of the Italian Cup. They will be aiming to replicate the performance of their last meeting where they won 3-1. My money is on AC Milan.
14/10 Empoli | Draw 22/10 | Monza 39/20
Empoli were a point away from the drop last season, they finished 17th on the log with 36 points. They will be looking to do better this time around and defeating Monza would be a great start to their campaign. They whipped Monza 3-0 in their last clash and will be looking to emulate that performance.
Monza on the other side, had a wonderful pre-season where they played five matches, losing once, playing one draw, and winning three matches. They closed the season with three straight losses and missed out on a top eight finish. A draw will be the outcome of this match.
Sunday 18 August
9/10 Bologna | Draw 47/20 | Udinese 32/10
Bologna qualified for the UEFA Champions League after finishing fifth with 68 points last season. They had the league’s third-strongest defence having conceded only 32 goals in 38 matches. Vincenzo Italiano was appointed to replace the recently departed Thiago Motta who has joined Juventus. We look to see if he can build from the club’s last season’s success.
Udinese had a lacklustre 2023-24 season which saw them finishing 15th with 37 points. They have roped in the experienced Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez to solve their goal-scoring problems and also strengthened the squad with several new signings while other players were called back from loan. They look promising to do better than last season having eased past Avellino 4-0 in the Italian Cup on Friday. Back the home team to win.
29/10 Verona | Draw 5/2 | Napoli 9/10
Verona were unbeaten during their pre-season matches but failed to build from that when they were edged by second-division side Cesena 2-1 and knocked them out of the Italian Cup this past Saturday. They are the underdogs in this match and should use the backing of their home fans as motivation to bag all three points against one of the toughest teams in the league.
Napoli are looking to reclaim their place at the top after a disappointing season. The 2022-23 champions failed to defend their trophy after a disastrous campaign which saw them finishing 10th on the log with 53 points. They will miss out on all continental competitions. Their star striker Victor Osimhen is linked with a possible move to the English Premier League and Romelu Lukaku is tipped to be his replacement. Easy win for Napoli.
11/4 Cagliari | Draw 49/20 | Roma 19/20
Cagliari experienced eighteen losses out of their 38 league matches last season. Despite signing eleven new players, they played three friendly games, and we are eager to know if they were enough for the new players to blend into the team.
Roma on the other hand, closed off their off-season friendlies with a draw against English Premier League side Everton in a match that ended 1-1. The 2021-22 UEFA Conference League winners will also be competing in the next edition of the Europa League having finished sixth last season. They have won the past four fixtures against the home team. Bet for the away team to win.
5/10 Lazio | Draw 31/10 | Venezia 52/10
Lazio is set to kick-start the new season with newcomers Venezia in what may be a one-sided given their off-season form where they won five and played two draws out of their seven friendlies. They seem to be continuing with last season’s form and are motivated to top the 2023-24 seventh-place finish.
The underdogs Venezia gained promotion after finishing third and overcoming Cremonese, Catanzaro, Palermo, Sampdoria, and Brescia in the promotional playoffs. They are facing an uphill battle and will be lucky to get a draw in this match. Landslide victory for Lazio.
Monday August 19
31/10 Lecce | Draw 26/10 | Atalanta 17/20
The Europa League champions Atalanta were not promising in their pre-season matches, they closed off with a 3-0 loss against German side St. Pauli. They are set to clash with Real Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday before opening the league with a visit to Lecce.
The home side will get a chance to study Atalanta and prepare for their Monday meeting. Lecce experienced three straight losses during pre-season. They will be aiming for a top half finish this time and a win in their opening match will show that they mean business, however, that is easier said than done. Atalanta is worth putting your money on.
1/3 Juventus | Draw 39/10 | Como 1907 15/2
Juventus will go head-to-head with Como to bring down the curtain on the opening round of fixtures. Juve had a good 2023-24 season finishing third but got mixed results in their off-season bouts which makes us question their readiness for the new season under new coach Thiago Motta. Newly signed former Aston Villa attacking midfielder Douglas Luiz is expected to make a mark for the home team.
Newcomers Como will be outmatched in all aspects of this match when comparing the squad and experience that both sides possess, and it is hard to see them getting a win. Juventus to win by a large margin.