A tough start to the season for the big clubs: on Sunday night, Inter also fell, leaving only Napoli, Juventus, Roma, and the surprise Cremonese with maximum points after the first two rounds.
After Milan’s shocking home defeat to Cremonese on opening day, the weekend’s surprise came again at San Siro, where Inter were stunned by Udinese in Sunday night’s late match.
What makes the Friulians’ achievement even more remarkable is that Inter had taken the lead almost immediately through Dumfries, only to be overturned and beaten. For Inter—who just a week ago opened the season with a dominant 5-0 win over Torino—it’s a serious setback right before the first international break: in situations like this, it’s always better to play right away to wipe away the bad memories and the sour feelings left by such an unexpected slip.
Napoli came dangerously close to slipping as well, held to a home draw by Cagliari until the 93rd minute on Saturday, when Zambo Anguissa delivered three golden points to Conte deep into stoppage time. These so-called “dirty” wins often end up weighing heavily in the course of a season, and they mark a team as truly great when it manages to bring them home.
Juventus and Roma didn’t have to wait until injury time: both won narrowly but deservedly, in Genoa and Pisa. From the Bianconeri’s hat didn’t come a rabbit, but once again a lion named Dusan Vlahovic. Offered around Europe (and Qatar) all summer, Vlahovic started on the bench for the second game in a row but scored again for the second game in a row. He is now both Juve’s and Serie A’s leading scorer, with a goal average that, over 38 matches, would project him to 38 goals—a pace reminiscent of Higuain’s golden days at Sarri’s Napoli.
Roma, under Gasperini, also had to turn to the bench in Pisa to find their game-changer. Dybala didn’t score, but once he came on in the second half, he completely transformed Roma by doing what he does best: “turning on the light” (to quote Mourinho). It didn’t take long for the Argentine to link up with his teammates and open up space for a lively Soulé—already among the best in the first half—who netted the decisive goal on an assist from Ferguson after an action inspired by La Joya himself.
Speaking of Roma, special mention goes to the sensational second match of Manu Koné. The French midfielder, strongly wanted by De Rossi last summer, is thriving under Gasperini’s guidance and looks set to become what Ederson has been for Atalanta in recent years: a complete midfielder, capable of winning countless balls and driving his team forward, even by taking matters into his own hands when needed. The only step left in his development is to gain confidence in front of goal, where he still tends to be too timid.
Rounding out the list of Serie A’s perfect starters is the season’s biggest surprise: Nicola’s Cremonese. Many thought that the “survival specialist” had taken on a thankless job by accepting the Grigiorossi bench, but so far the results are proving him more than right. Nicola is a skilled, well-prepared coach who knows how to strike the right chord with his players. If the saying “a good day starts in the morning” holds true, the dawn of this new Serie A season for him and his Cremonese is brighter than ever.
L’articolo Serie A: Four Teams with Maximum Points After Two Matches, and the Fourth is a Shock proviene da Soccer Made In Italy.
