A Look Back At Serie A 2013/14!

Serie A closes on Sunday evening with the championship, Champions League spots, and relegated clubs decided by last weekend.

There remains the issue of the last Europa League spot which is up for grabs between Torino, Parma, Hellas Verona and AC Milan - all four will be in action on Sunday night.

Juventus clinched their third Scudetto in a row with the sort of ease that we've gotten used to seeing from Turin's Old Lady in the last couple of seasons.

With Italy pretty much conquered and the likes of AS Roma and Napoli leading the chase with their young, developing squads, one wonders what challenge is left to motivate Antonio Conte - the Champions League could be a start and boy does Italian football need a club to win the Champions League in order to get back into the top 3 leagues in Europe - and a 4th Champions League spot which it held for so long.

Indeed, Italy's Serie A is now behind Portugal's Primeira Liga in the UEFA rankings following Juventus' failure to beat Benfica and make the Europa League Final in their own stadium.

Despite the rankings pointing otherwise, Italy's Serie A remains a top quality league and the action and interest is as great as ever - but there are problems evident, i.e. racism by fans, stadia no longer suited for the modern football fan, etc.

Bologna were relegated in matchday 37 along with Catania and Livorno

Here is a look back at the season gone by -



Surprise of the Season - Tough call between Sassuolo whose first ever season in the top flight ended in survival despite the odds and Torino who have made a strong push for European football but my surprise of the season goes to Hellas Verona. 

For so long a club on the periphery and used to fighting relegation whether it's in Serie A or B, Hellas' first season in Serie A in 11 years was one that didn't follow their history. They started quickly out of the blocks and even though they naturally faded away against the more experienced and fancied sides, they were never out of the top ten and are guaranteed a top ten finish this season. Ok, they were helped by the goals of experienced Italian international, Luca Toni but there is more to a team than one player, and the rest of the team chipped in as Hellas became Verona's number one team.

Disappointment of the Season - AC Milan - while it was definitely a year of rebuilding for the Rossoneri, they were expected to at least to feature in the top ten, let alone challenge for European football, with Mario Balotelli, Stephan el-Sharaawy and Kaka, returning from Real Madrid on a free. It was a season that Liverpool fans will probably be familiar with in recent times - Milan did win their games against the bottom half clubs at home but were dreadful against stronger sides and away from home.

Balotelli spent a lot of the season down on his feet

Massimiliano Allegri was sacked after the owners had enough of Milan's dreadful run and brought in former player Clarence Seedorf as coach came in halfway through the season - Seedorf's influence did turn Milan around and they have an outside chance of European football. But even if they somehow end up in the Europa League, it doesn't really make up for what has been a terribly disappointing season for the red and black half of Milan.

Player of the Season - Arturo Vidal, Juventus - possibly the best midfielder in Italy right now, world football fans can look forward to seeing Vidal's performances for Chile at the World Cup after yet another stellar season guiding Juve to the Scudetto. Vidal's versatility means he is a threat anywhere and even with Carlos Tevez, Fernando Llorente and Paul Pogba popping up with goals, he still contributes a fair few pearlers to watch.

Emerging Player of the Season - Domenico Berardi, Sassuolo - the young forward from the South made a huge impact at the club he was loaned out to by Juventus, including 4 goals in a memorable 4-3 home win over former European champions, AC Milan. The Neroverdi will find it hard to keep the young forward at the club with Juventus certain to ask him back. One to watch for the future.

Game of the Season - Sampdoria 3-4 Sassuolo, Nov 3, 2013 - Sassuolo have had a memorable first ever season in Serie A with some incredible results away from home. There was the win at Europa League chasing Fiorentina where Berardi scored 4 goals but this result at Luigi Ferraris was the game of the season for me. In a game that twisted and turned, Sassuolo took a 3-1 lead before Sampdoria clawed back to 3-3 with 9 minutes to go, only for Berardi to complete his hat-trick from the spot and seal a win that helped fire Sassuolo's survival quest.

Goal of the Season - Freddy Guarin, Inter v Torino

Team of the Season -
Mattia Perrin, Genoa (GK)

Mehdi Benatia, Roma
Leonardo Bonucci, Juventus
Giorgio Chiellini, Juventus

Gervinho, Roma
Arturo Vidal, Juventus
Borja Valero, Fiorentina
Alessio Cerci, Torino

Carlos Tevez, Juventus
Ciro Immobile, Torino
Luca Toni, Hellas Verona

Arrivederci 2013/14!