Up for grabs

The Serie A title race remains the most open and competitive of all Europe’s top five leagues

- Paddy Agnew

Two questions dominate preparations for the forthcoming Serie A season: firstly, in the wake of their Herculean efforts to win last season’s title, will Napoli under new coach Rudi Garcia be able to reproduce anything like the high-intensity, dynamic football that won them the third title of their history with Luciano Spalletti?

Secondly, in the wake of the “Prisma” Plusvalenza (Capital Gains) scandal, are Juventus destined to decline under the weight of possible UEFA sanctions that could ban them from all European competition? The very real possibility that Juventus, who finished seventh in last season’s league, might be barred from the UEFA Europa Conference League may have far reaching implications for the club.

Already out of the Champions League because of a ten-point Italian Football Federation (FIGC) sanction imposed at a federation appeals hearing in May, heavily indebted Juventus can clearly ill-afford the loss of lucrative Champions League earnings. Without the points sanction, the Old Lady would have finished on 72 points alongside third-placed Inter and thus qualified for the lucrative Champions League.

In some senses, Napoli’s title win and Juve’s involvement in the Plusvalenza scandal represent the dynamically opposed lightning rods of today’s Italian football. On the one hand, we had a hugely popular celebration of a third