Five Things To Note From Serie A This Weekend

Apr. 19, 2010 - Rome, Italy - epa02123960 Fiorentina's Romanian striker Adrian Mutu leaves in a car after his sentence at an Anti-doping tribunal in Rome, Italy, 19 April 2010. Adrian Mutu has been suspended until 29 October 2010 for being tested positive for a banned appetite suppressant, Italy's anti-doping tribunal ruled today.

Serie A is becoming more and more interesting, and with Lazio continuing their winning streak, could we see a surprise winner for the scudetto? Lazio are currently first in the table with a four point lead on second placed Inter Milan. While we're just nine games into the season, maybe Lazio can manage second place? We'll just have to see if their good form continues, or whether they'll die down into the midtable.

1. Mutu returns for Fiorentina

After a nine-month doping ban, there was doubt whether Mutu would even continue his football-playing career. But the Romanian returned in great form for Fiorentina, playing a full 90 minutes away against Catania. Although the match ended 0-0, there were some sparks of action, like when Mascara hit the woodwork from a free kick, and when Mutu had a great header parried by Catania keeper Andujar. Yet Mutu's return couldn't mask the way that Mihajlovic's side played, and Fiorentina weren't playing well enough to earn three points. Mutu had a great shot saved by Andujar again, stopping him from a dream return. But Mutu's return is certainly a positive thing for Fiorentina fans, especially with the lack of Jovetic's creativity, they now have someone experienced who can score important goals.

2. Bari sink to 20th with latest defeat

Last season Bari were a fantastic team which went out to win matches against the top teams of the Serie A, but it's a di! fferent story this year. While Bari finished in 10th place last season, a wonderful finish for a newly-promoted side, this season they find themselves bottom of the table. Their latest defeat was to Udinese, and both goals were fantastic. The first was a wonder-strike into the top-left-hand corner from Alexis Sanchez, and the second was a powerful finish by Isla into the crossbar and into the back of Gillet's net. So what has happened to Giampiero Ventura's side? And do you think that Ventura could be sacked, and replaced by who? Remember to comment below regarding Bari's situation at the bottom of the table.

3. The relegation battle will be tight

Looking at the table, something struck me regarding who might go down to the Serie B, this season's relegation battle will be very interesting. What makes me say that is the fact that there are 10 teams within three points of the bottom of the table. That mean that if your team has a bad match, and a couple of other sides have a good match, then you could find yourself in the relegation zone. Right now there's Cesena, Bologna, and Bari in the bottom three of the table, but I expect those three teams to survive this season. So who will go down? Well I think that this season Lecce, Brescia, and Parma will go down, but that's just my opinion. So please share your opinion on who you think will be playing in the Serie B next season by commenting below!

4. and 5. Cassano will remain at Sampdoria who grab a win without him

I've decided to unify my fourth and fifth things to note about Serie A, mainly because they both include Sampdoria and Cassano. A couple of days ago Cassano decided not to attend an awards ceremony that the Sampdoria president Riccardo Garrone had asked the player to attend. After this event, there was a heated exchange between the player and president which opened up a can of rumors regarding a possible move for Cassano to Juventus, Inter Milan, and maybe even Chelsea. But now the storm has died dow! n, Cassa no said sorry to the president with this statement,

I'm sorry for what happened, and I've already said sorry to Mr. Garrone, which respect and like very much, in the presence of my teammates. To my teammates I wish them good luck for the game against Cesena. I read that the situation would be connected with speculations about the market, but I reaffirm that, always that there's the possibility, it's my solid intention to remain with Sampdoria.

So it seems like everybody is happy even if Cassano didn't play in Sampdoria's 1-0 win away against Cesena. And Sampdoria suffered without Antonio, Walter Mazzarri's side could only find a winner in the 93rd minute of the match, with Giampaolo Pazzini tapping in Marilungo's low ball across the box.

While I wanted Cassano to move away from Sampdoria, to a bigger club where he would be surrounded by world class players, it isn't all that bad that he has remained in Genoa. Hopefully he'll continue to play for Sampdoria, and play well enough to get into the Italian national team. With Balotelli's return from injury, I can't wait to see the two pair up under the guidance of Prandelli as Italy tries to qualify for the European Championships of 2012.

What are your thoughts regarding this weekend's Serie A action? Share your comments below!

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