Inter are Italian champions for the 2023/2024 season. A clear and incontrovertible verdict, for the ability of the team coached by Simone Inzaghi to be a truly perfect machine from start to finish. For a Nerazzurri team that has bordered on perfection, there are those who lick their wounds and recite the mea culpa. The presumed competitors for the Scudetto race were all swept away, without even putting up much resistance. Milan, Juventus and Napoli are the first major defendants in a championship won by a landslide with merit by those who have never shown any weaknesses but in which the three pursuers, in turn, have shown themselves inadequate to hold their own. MILAN Never before in the history of Serie A had a Scudetto been awarded at the end of a derby: Pioli’s Milan also had the unfortunate record and the task of giving their cousins the title which is worth the second star in the very match that it compared the two forces of the city. Even playing at home. The best (or worst) of the summaries for a season full of contradictions, which started with the enthusiasm and self-conviction that the summer revolution that had swept away two central figures of the 2022 tricolor like Maldini and Massara and brought new signings for 120 million euros was the key to playing on equal terms and ended with the bitter observation that the gap with Inter had not only not been closed, but had also increased. The pitch, the supreme judge, never lies: Milan has never known how to be a team, too clinging to the moons of its individuality, which often made the difference in close matches but which in the long run were eclipsed in key moments of the championship. If the first bath of humility of the first leg of the derby, lost with a humiliating 1-5, should have been read as a dangerous alarm bell, the terrible sequence of injuries in the October-December two-month period promptly extinguished any Rossoneri ambitions. The fight for the Scudetto with Inter ended there, between defeats against Juventus and Atalanta interspersed with incomprehensible failures against Lecce, Udinese, Napoli and Salernitana. If it ever started. And then the many tactical misunderstandings generated by a squad built with many players devoted to attack and not enough to the defensive phase and sacrifice and managed in a bizarre manner by a coach, Stefano Pioli, confirmed in the general skepticism after an extremely disappointing season like that passed and put at the center of everything. Cover face of the new technical project without Maldini anymore, a coach with all-round skills, who ended up becoming in the darkest moments – until the last chapter of this story – the only scapegoat in the eyes of the fans. Covering the obvious shortcomings, in terms of continuity and above all leadership, of the presumed top players of the team – Maignan, Theo Hernandez, Loftus-Cheek, Pulisic, Leao and Giroud, but we could go on – who disappeared at the moment, when it was time to do the difference. JUVENTUS Everything in that speech. Clumsy, incoherent, dangerous and therefore punished. Even today, if you ask the Juventus fans what was the moment in which everything collapsed, the answer indicates Arek Milik’s head down, the draw with Empoli, that red that changes everything. Which above all makes Juventus vulnerable, splitting the year into a before and an after. That’s where the disappointment all began, it’s in the backlash later described by the Juventus players as well. Which after Inter and the defeat at San Siro brought together hiccups and shortcomings, worries that had until then been calmly kept at bay and then returned, finally exploded. At Juventus there was not only the euphoria of the Scudetto, there was above all the presumption of being able to cultivate that dream, despite the conscious technical distance with the Nerazzurri team. It was impossible to keep that pace, but Juventus, after an excellent start, did everything they could not to do so. It wasn’t enough to discover the star Yildiz (already less shining), it didn’t help not to have the commitment in the cups. However, it was enough to work on the head to try to fill that gap which still seems unattainable today. And this is where the Juventus team will have to start again. Here it is: it is a season that leaves deep, not superficial, wounds in Turin. And perhaps Allegri is right not to think about regrets: looking back, he would find millions of them. NAPLES For an Inter that wins, there is a Napoli that sees the tricolor torn from their chest. Just a year ago at the foot of Vesuvius we experienced a joy that had been awaited for 33 years. This season the scepter of Italian champions has been left to Inter, both due to the merits of the Nerazzurri and due to the disastrous management of the Neapolitan club which has embarked on a path that even leads out of the Champions League zone. The farewells of Spalletti, sporting director Giuntoli and Kim were heavy. These are the three figures who have made their absence felt the most and have not been replaced properly. De Laurentiis recognized his mistakes, took responsibility for what happened and tried to remedy the situation on several occasions, both with the double change of coach and with interventions in the repair market. Too late, the blue boat quickly sank and only the memory of that wonderful Naples remains. Above all, planning was lacking, given that Kim’s farewell had been known for some time, practically during the season in progress. It was necessary to prevent and instead the idea of going for the inexperienced and not up to par Natan was a huge flop, as was choosing Garcia with a less than irresistible list of successes and Mazzarri who had been away from the field for a while. Napoli took many steps backwards and abandoned their fight with Inter too early. The future does not see a clear sky, something else will be needed to put a spoke in the wheels of the new Italian champions. And we will start with the refoundation, scheduled for next summer.
