EURO BITES: Serie A - Inter move clear at the top, Roma play water polo, and why don’t sponsors invest more in Italian teams?

Salvatore Avallone rounds up the latest news from Serie A on a weekend when Inter moved clear at the top of the table and Roma failed to get a game abandoned.

“THAT WASN’T FOOTBALL”, ROMA COACH COMPLAINS

In the Bologna-Roma match on Saturday, the sport that was played seemed more like water polo than football. After some heavy downpours, Roma pressured the referee to postpone the match, but to no avail. Bologna ended the first half with a deserved 1-0 advantage, but Roma firstly equalised and then took a 2-1 second-half lead. But with minutes remaining, former Roma star Mattia Destro levelled for Bologna to claim a point. Roma coach Rudi Garcia refused to comment on the draw, saying only that the game that was played was not football. The only positive aspect for Garcia was that a clean bill of health ahead of Roma’s crucial Champions League match against Barcelona on Tuesday.

AC MILAN HOODOO AT JUVENTUS STADIUM CONTINUES

In this year’s championship neither Juventus nor Milan has shone, and in Saturday’s match the weaknesses of both teams were apparent. With both desperate for a victory to bring them closer to the top of the Serie A table, it was Juventus that managed to claim the three points thanks to a goal by Argentine striker Paulo Dybala, his sixth this season. Milan seems to be cursed at the Juventus Stadium. Saturday’s match marked their fifth consecutive defeat at the new home of the Bianconeri. They again struggled in attack despite the presence of expensive summer acquisitions Carlos Bacca and Luiz Adriano, managing only two attempts on goal all game. Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said his side “need a lot more victories to make it back to the top”.

NAPOLI JUMPS FIORENTINA TO TAKE SECOND PLACE AND BECOME TITLE CONTENDERS

Napoli continued their winning streak with an easy victory against Verona, putting them into second place in the table ahead of Fiorentina on goal difference. They once again demonstrated that in terms of performance at present they are unsurpassed in the league and Napoli have to be title contenders. This is the fifth match in which they have not conceded a goal, and they again continued to create numerous opportunities to score. Napoli could have sealed the match in the first half with Verona limited to defending, but it was in the second half that homegrown talent Lorenzo Insigne scored and then assured victory with an assist for Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain. Coach Maurizio Sarri is playing down Napoli’s title chances and said: “The season is long, it’s too early to talk about the title.”

TUSCAN DERBY: FIORENTINA UNRECOGNISABLE AGAINST EMPOLI

The “Tuscan derby” between Fiorentina and Empoli ended in a surprising 2-2 draw on Sunday. In a game of two halves, Empoli dominated the first before Fiorentina dominated the second. Fiorentina coach Paulo Sousa underestimated Empoli in the first half, keeping Nikola Kalinic, Giuseppe Rossi and Federico Bernardeschi on the bench to give them a break before Thursday’s Europa League match. But the visitors were aggressive and determined, and scored led 2-0 at the break. Sousa corrected his errors, putting Kalinic and Bernardeschi on as they turned the game around. Croatian striker Kalinic scored twice to secure a 2-2 draw before Sousa admitted his errors and vowed that his first-half formation will not be repeated.

INTER ALONE AT THE TOP OF THE TABLE

With Sunday’s victory over Frosinone, Inter is now alone at the top of the Serie A with a two-point advantage over Fiorentina and Napoli. The 4-0 score didn’t reflect Frosinone’s performance, however, with the fledgling team holding its own against Inter, particularly in the first half before Roberto Mancini changed his 4-2-3-1 formation to a 4-4-2. Putting Jonathan Biabiany and Adem Ljajic on the wings made the difference for Inter. Particularly encouraging for Inter was the goal of striker Mauro Icardi, who is not having the most productive of seasons, and the fact that the team has now not conceded a goal in four consecutive matches. Although he is happy that Inter tops the table, Mancini claimed that there are four teams stronger than his: Napoli, Roma, Juventus and Fiorentina.

SPONSORS SHY AWAY FROM ITALY?

Sponsorship constitutes a significant revenue for football clubs, and the importance of them is rising. Although the top Serie A teams have backers like Adidas and Nike, the Italian teams bring in far less in revenue than their counterparts in the rest of Europe. Compare, for example, Adidas’ €30 million contract with Juventus or Milan with the company’s €94 million deal with Manchester United. Teams like Napoli and Roma, meanwhile, have only €8 and €5 million deals respectively. Why, many wonder, the enormous gap? In part the difference is due to the fact that Italian Lega Calcio has not sold Serie A television rights in the rest of the world the way the Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga have. But it may also have to do with the black market: in Italy, counterfeit jerseys are purchased en masse.