Can anyone catch Juventus when Serie A returns?

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With the festivities coming to an end across much of Europe, the top football leagues are emerging from their hibernation and getting ready for action.  In the Italian Serie A, all eyes are at the top of the table as teams look to catch Juventus, who entered the winter break with a 4-point lead and a game in hand at the top of the table.

Juventus lost Paul Pogba to Manchester United in the summer but by signing Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli, the Old Lady confirmed their status as the top club in Italian football.  However, we are yet to see a consistent run of great performances by Max Allegri’s team this season but having had said that, imagine what they would do if they really hit their stride?

Considering the likes of Claudio Marchisio and Paulo Dybala have been missing for large parts of the season, Juve’s squad has shown strength in depth and versatility to cope without these players. There is little to suggest anything other than a record sixth straight Serie A title for Juventus this season and Allegri will also have his sights set firmly on the Champions League.

Sitting in second place in the table are Roma, who must still be smarting at the dropped points against Atalanta, Empoli and Cagliari. The defeat to Juventus prior to the winter break will have hurt, especially considering the performance they delivered. Overall, Luciano Spalletti can be pleased with his team’s season to date and they have recorded some excellent wins against Napoli, Inter Milan, Lazio and AC Milan.  Roma are clearly the second-best team in Serie A and should go on to cement their position behind Juventus in the coming months.

Napoli, who sit 7 points off the leaders, will be disappointed they are not closer to the summit. Despite the loss of Gonzalo Higuain and new striker, Arkadiusz Milik to injury, Napoli have been scoring plenty of goals and Dries Mertens was been a revelation in the lead up to the winter break. However, the injury to Raul Albiol in defence and individual errors have cost Napoli points in big games and therefore they are adrift of Juventus. With Maurizio Sarri in charge, they have what it takes to compete with Roma for second place but will probably just fall short and need a qualifying match to make the group stages of the Champions League next season.

That being said, AC Milan and Lazio will have desires on third place and both have been impressive this season. With only three Champions League places available in Serie A, third place is hugely important and the race to finish inside the top three, could be more exciting than that for the title.

Lazio have a young team, which is starting to show its full potential under Simone Inzaghi. They have shown they can cope with injuries to key players, such as Stefan de Vrij and Lucas Biglia and with no European football to contend with in the New Year, can concentrate fully on making the top three.

The same applies to AC Milan, who have been enjoying their football under Vincenzo Montella this season. With several youngsters playing well, including Gianluigi Donnarumma, Manuel Locatelli and Gianluca Lapadula, there is a suggestion Milan could be about to return to the big time in the Champions League next season. The main question mark will come towards the end of the season, when the pressure is on. Will the players be able to cope and pick up the points required to finish in the top three?

With Atalanta enjoying a great season, especially at home and Inter Milan picking up three straight wins before the winter break, any additional challenge for the Champions League places is likely to come from either of these two teams.  However, as things stand, you must fancy Juventus, Roma and Napoli to finish the season at the top of Serie A.