3 Reasons why Serie A is returning to its former glory

Serie A used to be one of the most appealing places for a young footballer to ply their trade and showcase their talents on a stage that was being watched by the world. Despite the scandal in 2006, more popularly known as Calciopoli amongst the footballing world, which sent shock-waves across the continent with clubs like Lazio, Fiorentina being relegated to the second tier of football. Juventus had two titles stripped, were relegated and had to start the next season with a points total of -30 points.

Despite that, the league kept attracting star players and was fortunate to already have a lot of the world's cream of the crop already there, and with Italy winning the 2006 World Cup, the popularity of the Italian national league as a whole increased for the average football fan.

Over the years, players like Zinedine Zidane, Pavel Nedved, Fabio Cannavaro, Kaka, Ronaldo Fenomeno (R9) donned their respective club jerseys and bamboozled fans in Italy and across the world week in week out. It all came to a crescendo when Inter Milan won the treble under Jose Mourinho by beating Pep Guardiola's all-conquering Barcelona, and as they say, after every high, there's a low right around the corner, and low for Italian football came in pretty hard.

There were signs even before, but they were papered over by the lack of competition from mid-table sides to the top dogs, which helped them remain unscathed. Top players fleed to other countries to showcase their magic, and the sale of Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Milan to PSG was the final nail in the coffin of the golden age of Serie A, as after that Milan failed to get into the Champions League, let alone make deep runs into the competition like a club their stature is expected to.

The league as a whole couldn't keep their top talents from leaving for pastures greener, and the quality of football overall took a nosedive. But now things seem to be on the upswing again, so let's explore the reasons we are seeing the resurgence of this once great league as a contender for top dog.

1) The elephant in the room

Manchester United v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Group H

Yes, it is Cristiano Ronaldo. It is not every day one of the sport's most decorated champions decides to leave the club with which he broke every record in the record book with to take on a new challenge in a new league and country at the ripe old age of 33.

But even at this age, Ronaldo's desire to win, prove himself the best and marketability are second to none and bringing him from Real to Juventus which was hugely beneficial for not only the Old Lady. His arrival was more than amazing for the rest of the league, as all of Ronaldo's plethora of fans want to see him take the next step in his career to further enhance his reputation as the best player on the planet and a true champion of the game.

As a result, games such as Chievo Verona vs Juventus are getting more attention and viewers across the globe, with fans turning in to watch a truly one of a kind player elevate a new team, and an entire football division to a level they thought was long lost for them and an era that would not come back so soon.

2) The plethora of potentially World Class talent :

It's been an awfully long time since a team not wearing black and white won the league.

The rise of the Italian league is not just because one of the two best players on the planet decided they want to ply their trade there. No, despite it being a huge factor, that's not the only thing that has brought Serie A into the limelight. Italian teams are producing and/or purchasing a lot of great talent who are making it more appealing for a global audience to tune in and watch these superstars play.

Also, like the hallmark of every good league, there are a few minnows who love causing an upset when they're throwing punches above their weight class (AS Roma just lost to SPAL at home!).

Teams like Fiorentina, Lazio, Roma, Napoli, and Milan have seriously strengthened gradually and are in possession local or homegrown talents that are chased by global powerhouses such as Manchester United, Barcelona etc. Serej Milinkovic-Savic, Federico Chiesa, Alessio Romagnoli to name a few have decided to grace the Italian top flight with their talents.

3) The gradual rise of competition for Juventus :

Yes, Juventus have been Serie A champions on the trot for seven straight seasons, and to a casual eye it may seem as one-sided a league as the French one, but the steady rise of Lazio, The Milan clubs (Inter and AC), Roma, Napoli, and Fiorentina has been very interesting to see.

Unless you were living under a rock for the past year or two, you'd know that both the Milan clubs over the past few transfer windows have made several signings to attempt to return to the heights they once scaled to in the olden days. Both those clubs have had players coming in and out of them like a conveyer belt, and while that does cause a lot of instability, both of them this year really seems to have discovered what their best lineup is and made several signings to further add to their strength that suit the style of play the managers play.

Inter have several top class players like Mauro Icardi, Ivan Perisic, Radja Naingollan, and Brozovic to name a few who have really helped Inter in starting to push Juventus in the title race, whilst Milan have recruited heavily and that team seems to be starting to gel together this season, and it's only a matter of time and a couple more signings before they are truly back competing with Europe's elite.

Both Napoli and Roma have been up there for a while now too, as Napoli were the best attacking team in Italy under Maurizio Sarri even after losing their best goalscorer to league leaders Juventus. AS Roma have been quietly working their way into the conversation of Italy's elite which was really helped by bringing in Sevilla's transfer market stalwart Monchi as the club's sporting director, who has made a number of signings to replace the old guard and usher in a new era of success for the club.

Due to these major factors and many many more things, the Italian league has slowly but surely returned in the running for being considered as one of the best footballing leagues in the world.