In less than a month, we’re off again! The Serie A 2018/19 season is looming large and the transfer market is heating up nicely.
Fans in Italy can’t wait for it all to start, after missing out on World Cup 2018, and football betting players are looking closely at the movers and shakers in the transfer market. Of course, Cristiano Ronaldo and Radja Nainggolan have taken the headlines, with Ronaldo’s big money move to Juve, and Nainggolan’s early summer switch from Roma to Inter.
But there are plenty more deals still to be done as teams the length and breadth of Italy jockey for position.
Notable Transfers and Signings
Roma hope that their 22m Euros capture of Javier Pastore will go some way to softening the blow of losing Nainggolan. Pastore, with 29 caps for Argentina, has proved he’s an attacking midfielder of some prowess in seven seasons at PSG, scoring 29 goals in 184 appearances.
That compares pretty well with Nainggolan’s record at Roma, though Pastore doesn’t have the haircut or tattoos to stand up to Radja! Roma have made a 2 million net profit on these deals> Loose change, I guess.
Fellow Romans Lazio have picked up Sassuolo defender Francesco Acerbi for a cool £9m and the 30-year-old could be a very shrewd buy on the part of Simone Inzaghi.
Meanwhile, Napoli have paid £20m for highly-rated Udinese keeper Alex Meret. There’s a rebuilding job to be done in Naples after the departure of boss Maurizio Sarri to Chelsea. Our football odds at SBOBET have installed Juventus as hot favourites to make it a record eighth Scudetto at 1.32 with Napoli best placed to challenge at 5.50.
Carlo Ancelotti has the pedigree to take the job on and he’ll be scheming how his new team can better their second place last season.
Roma have lost their top keeper. Alisson officially signed for Liverpool to make him the world’s most expensive goalie and fans in the Kop can hardly wait. The present incumbent Loris Karius hasn’t had a great three months and was in the nets as Dortmund scored three second half goals against the Reds in the ICC on Sunday.
Who’s Next?
So where are the deals bubbling under?
Arsenal’s Petr Cech linked with Roma: Could the experienced Arsenal stopper be on his way to replace Alisson? Well, it’s possible after the arrival of Bayer Leverkeusen keeper Bernd Leno at the Emirates. Leno will hope to be number one at Arsenal and Cech still has plenty to offer, having excelled at both Chelsea and Arsenal.
Napoli interested on Manchester United’s Matteo Darmian: He’s one of the most versatile defenders in the Premier League and having had a nice summer break, with Italy failing to qualify for Russia World Cup 2018, Darmian could be the man for Napoli.
Darmian is one of a few full back options Ancelotti is working on, and it looks like the Old Trafford club will be open to offers as he enters the last 12 months of his contract. Jose Mourinho is more likely to recoup some money rather than see his utility player leave for nothing next year.
Leo Bonucci another option for the Red Devils: Mourinho might make a move for Milan’s defensive rock if he can’t land Leicester City’s World Cup sensation Harry Maguire. That makes sense to me as Jose does seem to favour match-ready experience in his dealings, and you don’t get many centre backs with a better track record than Bonucci.
Malcom Bordeaux to Roma…or Inter: Roma are favourites to sign Brazilian winger Malcom from Ligue 1 club Bordeaux, having tabled a 32 million bid, according to Sky in Italy. Inter and Premier League club Everton have also expressed an interest, but the player is reported to be close to agreeing terms with Roma and Eusebio Di Francesco is keen to get his man.
The 21-year-old winger has a one in four goal to game ratio and is tipped for a big international future.
Other rumours: Ex Manchester City defender Stefan Savic could be on his way from Atletico Madrid to Juventus. The Montenegro international could be a good fit for the Bianconeri.
And what about Arturo Vidal from FC Bayern to Inter? The 30-million rated Chilean midfielder is in a similar mould to Nainggolan…what a pairing that would be!
Winners and Losers
The biggest guns in Serie A have already made some serious moves; Juventus grabbing the headlines with the signing of Ronaldo.
Inter too will be pleased with their dealings so far, especially if they land Vidal to add even more steel to their middle.
Napoli have been a little quieter but the capture of Meret is a good deal, while the arrival of Darmian would mean Ancelotti is gathering momentum.
And while I like Roma’s signing of Pastore, they are still losing until they get a replacement for their departed goal keeper.
It’s going to carry on heating up, with Serie A starting on 19th August, and with fewer than four weeks left ‘til kick-off now is the time for the deals to be done.
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