Milan: The champion's character test
Last season Stefano Pioli's team did the unexpected when they maintained stability, withstood the pressure and won their first championship since 2011. This achievement was great, and no less great is the fact that Milan managed to keep most of their assets.
So Franck Casilla went to Barcelona and Alessio Romagnoli to Lazio, but Rafael Laao is still here, so are Mike Mannion, Theo Hernandez, Sandro Tonali, Ismael Benasser and Pierre Kalolo.
Even Zlatan is still here.
All of these were joined by Dibuque Origi who arrived from Liverpool, the talented Belgian Charles de Catharla who made a very positive impression in his short time at Milan and Yassin Adli who returned from his loan at Bordeaux.
"To win the championship you need talent, but to defend the title you need character," Pioli told "Gazetta", who will try to succeed in the Champions League this season as well.
🎥 Our first run out at San Siro of the new season 🏟️
🎥 Il primo assaggio di San Siro in questa nuova stagione 🏟️#SempreMilan pic.twitter.com/QFxFZygfIu
— AC Milan (@acmilan) August 11, 2022
Inter: Not sure it will be enough
The Nerazzurri are a great example of a team that failed to keep the top last season and will try to get back there quickly.
To this end, Romelu Lukaku was brought back after a nightmarish season at Chelsea, determined to prove that he has not lost the joy of the game.
"This season in England gave me motivation to succeed even more in the coming season," he said in an interview this week, "I'm not interested in being the top scorer, I want to win the championship."
The collaboration of the Belgian with Lautro Martins in the preparatory games is the main reason why the Scudetto can return to the blue-black side of the city, but there are not many other reasons for now.
Apart from Lukaku, Inter was unable to bring in the acquisition they wanted.
Paulo Dybala slipped away to Roma, Bremer went to Juve, and on top of that they lost Ivan Perisic who joined Antonio Conte at Tottenham and Alexis Sanchez who left for Marseille.
Those who did arrive are the 33-year-old midfielders Henrik Mikitarian and the 20-year-old Kristian Aslani and the goalkeeper Andre Unana.
It's nice, but not sure enough.
☀️👀⚽️#ForzaInter pic.twitter.com/M83XAmvUsq
— Inter (@Inter) August 9, 2022
Juventus: "Must win something"
is not enough. This is exactly the feeling that Massimiliano Allegri's team creates.
After two difficult seasons in fourth place, there was an expectation that she would attack the market.
But when she returned from it, she got the feeling that her bags were emptier than they were.
Dybala, Giorgio Chiellini, Matthias de Licht, Albero Morata, Federico Bernardeschi and probably Adrien Rabio also left, and those who arrived are Paul Pogba who had already managed to get injured, Angel Di Maria, Bremer, Filip Kostic, and in the coming days Memphis Depay may also join And Andrew Pardes.
The squad looked thin, procurement arrived late and the pre-season games highlighted the problems.
There was a draw against Barcelona, a loss to Real Madrid and a defeat to Atlético (4:0) that included a hat-trick by X Morata, which Juve was happy to reply.
Kostic.
Joins the group, photo: EPA
"After finishing a season without titles, for the first time in a decade, we have an obligation to win something," declared Allegri.
According to the boss, there is a good squad, now he must prove that it is true.
Napoli: Putting things in perspective
The Neapolitans went through a real revolution last summer when they parted with icons like Kalidou Coulibaly, Dries Martens and Lorenzo Insigne, and in their place came intriguing names, literally, such as the Georgian talent Kvicha Kabrazdalia, the Korean stopper Kim Min Jae and the left back from Uruguay Matias Oliveira.
Coulibaly separated, photo: Reuters
"We are currently in a group below Milan, Juventus and Inter", said Luciano Spalletti trying to put things in proportion, but Napoli is always able to be a factor at the top.
A lot will depend on the fitness and health of Nigerian striker Victor Osiman.
Rome: What could go wrong?
Last season, Jose Mourinho's side finished sixth, 23 points adrift of champions AC Milan, but a clean sweep of the Conference League gave them a first-ever European title and injected tons of enthusiasm.
It was well felt when Paulo Dybala came to town and was hailed as someone who could return the Giallorossi to the days when Gabriel Batistuta, Francesco Totti and Vincenzo Montella led the team to their last championship in 2001.
This Roma season is going to be so entertaining to watch.pic.twitter.com/i5JGjiS5Hn
— IM (@Iconic_Mourinho) August 11, 2022
It is indeed early, very early, the season has not yet started, but this summer Rome passed on a cloud.
Nemanja Matic, Gini Wijnaldum and Zaki Celik also joined the team, Nicolo Zaniolo is fit and wants to stay despite the demand from outside, and Andrew Spinazzola will start a season fully healthy for the first time since the serious injury at the Euros.
The last preparation game against Shakhtar Donetsk (0:5) looks like a successful promo for a season that may be unforgettable, and the only question that hangs in the air is "what could go wrong?".
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