Impressive starts by Napoli and Roma in the Serie A: Is the tide shifting?

Gonzalo Higuain looks on during the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and SSC Napoli at Stadio Luigi Ferraris on September 28, 2013 in Genoa, Italy. (Getty Images)

The Serie A season has witnessed the rise of two teams in Roma and Napoli, who presently hold the top two positions in the leader board by virtue of their superlative performances till now.

Roma currently top the table with a flawless record in their first six games and Napoli is placed second with sixteen points (five wins and a draw). It has been an exceptional start of the season for both the teams as they have defeated the likes of AC Milan and Lazio respectively in the early days, and are looking strong to carry on with this sort of form.

What is interesting is that both Napoli and Roma lost some of their key players in the summer transfer market. Napoli parted ways with their talismanic striker Edinson Cavani, who was bought by French champions PSG, while Hugo Campegnaro joined Inter Milan.

Roma also sold talented players like Daniel Pablo Osvaldo (to Southampton), Erik Lamela (to Tottenham) and Marquinhos (to PSG) in a turbulent transfer window. The start of the season also saw managerial changes in both the clubs with Rafa Benitez taking charge of Napoli and Roma appointing Rudi Garcia as the man in charge.

Napoli is a club with rich heritage in the Italian football scene with two Serie A titles and four Coppa Italia titles. The team is the fourth most successful club in Italy and is looking to win the championship for the first time since 1990. The club started the new season in excellent fashion by winning at the San Siro (a feat not achieved since 1986 when Diego Maradona was a part of the team), ensuring that they should be considered challengers for the Scudetto this year.

The club strengthened their squad by adding quality players like Raul Albiol (Real Madrid), Dries Mertens (PSV), Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid) José Callejón (Real Madrid)and experienced goalkeeper Pepe Reina on loan (Liverpool) by using the money they received from the €64 million transfer of Cavani to big spending Paris Saint Germain.

Benitez has been successful in utilising his resources till now with Higuain scoring in each of the last three Serie A matches and forming a formidable striking partnership with Marek Hamsik. The club faced a reality check in their defeat against Arsenal in the Champions League, but can still be considered as major contenders this season.

Francesco Totti greets supporters at the end of the Serie A football Roma vs Bologna at the Olympic Stadium on September 29, 2013 in Rome. (Getty Images)

AS Roma, on the other hand, are dealing well with the managerial change and also the departure of some talented players. They are the only team in the league to have a perfect record in the opening six matches and they sit comfortably at the top of the league table by virtue of an impressive victory against Lazio (their first since 2011).

The pre season saw them lose quality players like Marquihos, Lamela and Osvaldo, but players like Kevin Strootman, Gervinho and Adam Ljajic have gelled together well to take command of the team. Garcia has employed the favoured 4-3-3 formation in the first few games, but the main focus remains on striking the proper balance between defence and attack.

Roma also boasts of a spectacular record of conceding only one goal till now, a feat worth appreciation. The lack of a proper striker is quite clear in the game play of the team which has seven different goal scorers in the league till now, but this point is unable to hinder the success of the Roma team.

Another major bonus for the team is the contact extension of Francesco Totti, which will see the legendary Italian playmaker play in Roma till 2016 at least. Many experts are reluctant to include Roma as major title contenders as they believe the squad lacks the depth of combating injury and fatigue problems, but if the initial form is to be believed, the team is a major contender for the Serie A title.

The race for the Serie A 2013-14 title is all set to get more interesting with Inter Milan, Fiorentina and Juventus trying to match the top two clubs with impressive victories in their matches. Inter Milan are trying to make a steady start to their season and have already proven their intent by posting a comprehensive 7-0 away victory against Sassuolo and are placed fourth with 14 points . The club is however still awaiting the return of their main striker Gabriel Milito.

Fiorentina is also without their front man Mario Gomez, who is sidelined with an injury problem, but the club is making steady progress in the Serie A games. Giuseppe Rossi has emerged as the front man for the team and he has already proved his mettle by scoring four goals, making him the joint top scorer with Napoli’s Hamsik.

Juventus is placed just behind Napoli in the points table with 16 points and are determined to complete a successful title defence this season. The start has been quite impressive by Antonio Conte’s side who boasts of dangerous strikers like Fernando Llorente and Carlos Tevez, who has shown great skill in the final third for the ‘Old Lady of Turin’.

The start of the season has provided us with a number of surprises and is this is the hint of the things to come, then it seems that the tide is indeed turning in the Serie A with more teams fighting for the title instead of the traditional clubs like AC Milan and Juventus holding monopoly over the prestigious competition.