Serie A Power Rankings: Round 19

Serie A officially reached its halfway stage as the 19th of 38 rounds has come to an end.

Eighteen of the 20 teams have completed 19 matches, with the exception of Roma and Catania, whose match in Round 18 was abandoned when the field became unplayable due to torrential rain. They play their rematch on Feb. 7th.

With 19 rounds gone, the midway champion is Juventus. The Old Lady is back to the top after years of misery post-Calciopoli.

The immediate visible effects of the scandal that rocked Italian football seem to be vanishing as the revamped club, led by the likes of Gianluigi Buffon, Claudio Marchisio, Andrea Pirlo and company, remains unbeaten and have a one-point lead at the top of the Serie A table.

Reigning champions Milan refuse to go quietly and have their Lombardy rival looking over their shoulders nervously.

The title race appears to have the north of Italy locked in warfare, mainly in the capitals of the northwestern regions of Lombardy and Piedmont. Juventus, out of Turin in Piedmont, are in command, but the two clubs of Milan, AC and Inter sit second and fourth respectively, with Inter only six points behind.

Udinese are the other northern club that make up the top four. They sit only two points behind Milan and three points away from Juventus.

So the race at the top, which once seemed like a two- or three-team race, is now a very close and intense four-team war. The next four-plus months are going to be filled with a lot of fun, a lot of excitement, a lot of intensity and, for fans of the four clubs, a lot of cheers, jeers, tears and broken objects.

So how does the rest of Italy's elite stack up? Here is the midway edition of the power rankings.

20. Novara (20)

Round 19: Lost 3-0 vs. AC Milan (H)

Not much more was expected from Novara, even against a team plagued by injuries like Milan.

The hosts came out of the gate as underdogs, and they were shown to be exactly that.

Samir Ujkani was busy all game. The defending champions ripped 24 shots and put nine of them on frame, of which he could only save six.

Possession? Novara didn't get to see the ball often, getting to play on the ball 39% of the time, and they only put two of their 10 shots on goal.

For some teams, it was an off day, but it's no surprise from Novara. It's what we have come to expect from the team who now sit dead bottom in Serie A.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Palermo (A)

19. Cesena (19)

Round 19: Lost 5-1 vs. Roma (A)

There's only so much one could say about this game.

Cesena are not a good team. They're actually quite bad by Serie A terms. Roma are playing quality football at the minute.

Both teams lived up to these trends on Saturday.

Citadin Eder scored again for Cesena in the loss, his second as he finally seems to want to start scoring after 17 games. However, Cesena have been unable to find many goals as a team, scoring a league-low 13. Now, they have to find another target in front of goal as Eder is on his way to Serie B to play with Sampdoria.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Atalanta (H)

18. Lecce (18)

Round 19: Drew 2-2 vs. Chievo Verona (H)

It's like Chievo Verona walked up to Lecce and said, "Here's one point."

The Wolves went down 1-0 after two minutes and 22 minutes later it was double that. But somehow, some way, the cellar dwellers picked up a draw at the Via del Mare, in front of a crowd of 6,250, which falls about 4,000 fans short of Lecce's average crowd this season.

Lecce have played 19 games. This is only the seventh time they have picked up at least a point, with this being their fourth draw. Surely, the fans in the region's capital are getting tired of the lousy play.

How is it that a team like Lecce can put the big two, Milan and Juventus, to the test and play so poorly the rest of the time? Who knows.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Inter Milan (H)

17. Siena (17)

Round 19: Drew 1-1 vs. Napoli (H)

Gianluca Pegolo was the hero as Siena managed a draw with Napoli.

No shockers who scored for the hosts as Emanuele Calaio picked up his eighth of the season before Napoli's equalizer four minutes from time.

Pegolo saved the point as shortly after Calaio's goal, Siena conceded a penalty, which he in turn stopped, making one of his six saves.

Siena sit very low in the table and are barely clear of the bottom, sitting only four points ahead.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Fiorentina (A)

16. Bologna (16)

Round 19: Drew 0-0 vs. Parma (H)

Bologna continue to do just enough to stay away from the drop zone.

Five wins and five draws give Bologna 20 points and that keeps them five points clear.

The game against Parma was very bland if you aren't a fan of either club, and maybe even if you are.

Fifty-fifty possession, two shots each on goal, no goals to either team's name. Those aren't the ingredients to a standout match.

Bologna are clear but not entirely clear, and they need to climb away from the lowly cellar dwellers to avoid relegation.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Roma (A)

15. Parma (13)

Round 19: Drew 0-0 vs. Bologna (A)

The other criminal in the most uninspiring match of the round was Parma. For the Crusaders, this was a match that needed to be won.

Parma were the better team in the second half after letting Bologna control the first 45, but they were unable to get anything going as even young star Sebastian Giovinco was incapable of producing.

Parma have won once in their last 10 matches, upsetting Udinese. They need to get another one fast.

Round 20: 1/28 vs. Catania (A)

14. Fiorentina (15)

Round 19: Drew 0-0 vs. Cagliari (A)

The other goalless draw was about as uninspiring as Parma-Bologna. Fiorentina were able to get a point against a tough Cagliari side.

It was once again a game of 50-50 possession and limited scoring opportunities. Artur Boruc was the busier goalkeeper, but not by much. Cagliari shot 10 times and put three on goal, forcing the Polish keeper into three saves for the clean sheet.

It's been an up-and-down year for Fiorentina, but this isn't the worst possible result, on the road at the Sant'Elia against a tough team. They still have a lot of room for improvement, though.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Siena (H)

13. Chievo Verona (12)

Round 19: Drew 2-2 vs. Lecce (A)

Chievo got the point, but they let Lecce back into the game.

Twenty-two-year-old Alberto Paloschi continued a solid season on loan from AC Milan as he scored his third goal of the season in the second minute and added to his tally in the 24th.

However, six minutes later, Lecce were right back in it with a goal in the 30th, and Chievo were on their heels the rest of the match.

Finally, with moments left, Lecce beat Stefano Sorrentino to score the equalizer at the death. Chievo lost a vital two points. They sit in ninth when they could be seventh.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Lazio (H)

12. Genoa (9)

Round 19: Lost 5-3 vs. Palermo (A)

Well, the attack certainly wasn't an issue for Genoa.

Seventeen shots, six on goal, 54% of the possession, and three goals could normally win a club a match.

What happened instead was the defense allowed 22 shots, eight on goal, and five—yes five—goals. It was a horrendous day by the defense, and they absolutely deserved to lose the game.

Goal difference drops the club to 10th in the table and rightfully so. What a terrible, terrible loss for Genoa.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Napoli (A)

11. Catania (11)

Round 19: Lost 2-1 vs. Udinese (A)

Catania faced a tough test trying to grab at least a point against Udinese, and they were unable to get the result, losing 2-1.

It could have easily been a draw, but Udinese went up 1-0 20 minutes in on an own goal from Mariano Izco.

When stoppage time came it was 2-0, but Francesco Ledo was able to get a goal back, though it wouldn't matter.

Coming to grips with the idea that they could very well be losing Maxi Lopez to Milan will be tough, but Catania are in with a chance of finishing in the top half this season and can't afford to slip up.

Round 20: 1/28 vs. Parma (H)

10. Cagliari (10)

Round 19: Drew 0-0 vs. Fiorentina (H)

What a terrible game for the neutral fan at the Sant'Elia this weekend. Cagliari and Fiorentina were as uninspiring as it gets, playing to a 0-0 draw.

Fifty-fifty possession, four total shots on goal—it was horrendous.

Cagliari had the better opportunities, but they were unable to beat the keeper.

Having dropped out of the top half of the table, the Sardinians now have work to do in proving they are as good as we all thought a few months ago.

The question for Cagliari is how to do it without Radja Nainggolan, who is on the verge of joining Juventus.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. AC Milan (A)

9. Palermo (14)

Round 19: Won 5-3 vs. Genoa (H)

Palermo overcame some lackadaisical defending to pick up a 5-3 victory at the Renzo Barbara.

Balanced scoring saw Igor Budan, Matias Silvestre, Andrea Mantovani, Fabrizio Miccoli and Giulio Migliaccio each find the net for the Rosanero.

With the win, Palermo climb to eighth, but they still sit nine points away from Lazio for the last European spot.

They're still not out of it, but it would take a miracle to be playing Europa League football next fall.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Novara (H)

8. Atalanta (8)

Round 19: Lost 2-0 vs. Juventus (H)

Atalanta don't move this week after falling to one of the vastly superior teams in the league.

While La Dea have been fantastic this year, Juventus are a breed of their own and are very difficult to beat, a quite obvious statement given the Old Lady's unbeaten record through half the season.

Andrea Consigli was busy, making six saves on eight shots on goal.

Atalanta were only able to garner 38% of the possession, which made it difficult to get anything going, but they did test Gianluigi Buffon five times.

Atalanta are a great team, but this was an expected loss.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Cesena (A)

7. Napoli (7)

Round 19: Drew 1-1 vs. Siena (A)

Napoli should have won this match, plain and simple.

Normally spot-on, Edinson Cavani failed to convert from the penalty spot with the visitors down 1-0 with 11 minutes to play. It was uncharacteristic of Cavani, who is a contender for the Capocannoniere title as the top goalscorer in Italy.

Goran Pandev saved the Azzurri with four minutes to go as he found the equalizer for a team that should have easily gotten the three points, given their domination on the stat sheet.

Napoli have two wins in their last six in Serie A. Three of those matches have been 1-1 draws against Novara, Bologna, and Siena, which, by the standards of a team that is preparing to play Chelsea next month in the Last 16 of the Champions League, should be unacceptable.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Genoa (A)

6. Lazio (5)

Round 19: Lost 2-1 vs. Inter Milan (A)

Tomasso Rocchi scored his fourth goal of the season, but Lazio were unable to get anything more out of their visit to the Guiseppe Meazza for their match with Inter.

The loss allowed Inter to leapfrog the Romans and take control of fourth place in Serie A, though Lazio retain their current spot in the Europa League part of the table.

The numbers were fairly even. Though Lazio controlled possession 55-45, as has been made clear in football, possession doesn't mean three points.

Napoli and Roma still linger in the shadows as Europa League competitors, but if Lazio can get back to getting results, they can run away from the chasers.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Chievo Verona (A)

5. Roma (6)

Round 19: Won 5-1 vs. Cesena (H)

Roma can't stop playing great football, can they?

The Giallorossi have won four straight and are unbeaten in their last four.

Roma dominated from the start at the Olimpico on Saturday, literally, as Francesco Totti scored in the first and eighth minutes and Fabio Borini scored only seconds after Totti's second. Juan made it 4-1, and Miralem Pjanic put on the finishing touches with 20 minutes to play.

Maarten Stekelenburg had very little work to do, making four saves on five shots on goal, and his defense hardly worked as Roma controlled the ball 75-25 on possession.

Six potential points sit on the table leading into Roma's upcoming match with Inter Milan. Arguably the second-hottest team behind Inter right now, they'll want to grab those points.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Bologna (H)

4. Udinese (3)

Round 19: Won 2-1 vs. Catania (H)

Udinese win, but fall in the rankings.

Despite still being a great contender for the title, they relied on a little fortune to beat Catania at the Friuli, and Catania were playing without star striker Maxi Lopez.

No surprise that Antonio Di Natale scored the goal for Udinese, while they were also aided by an own goal.

If not for the current form of Inter, Udinese would still be third. Just as I said in the introduction slide, the top four on this list are the top four title contenders and the split between them is very thin.

However, we will see if Udinese can flex their muscles on Saturday in a big clash with a perennial giant.

Round 20: 1/28 vs. Juventus (A)

3. Inter Milan (4)

Round 19: Won 2-1 vs. Lazio (H)

Inter are currently the hottest team in Serie A.

It isn't always easy. They sometimes have to rely on misfortune from the opponent, but Claudio Ranieri is making a strong case to be the next Manager of the Year, even though the newest winner of that award was only just crowned.

Inter once again pulled off a great win, with Diego Milito and Giampaolo Pazzini scoring the vital goals after Inter went down 1-0 on the half-hour.

Inter can definitely overcome the three-point deficit between them and Udinese to take the third Champions League spot.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Lecce (A)

2. AC Milan (2)

Round 19: Won 3-0 vs. Novara (A)

Milan dominated from start to finish against Novara.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic put home two second-half goals, and Robinho scored Milan's second with 17 minutes to go.

Marco Amelia, filling in at goal for the injured Christian Abbiati, was barely worked, making two saves. Milan had 61% of possession, which made it hard for Novara to get anything going.

Milan remain one point behind the leaders, Juventus, with only about a month before the two rivals meet again.

Round 20: 1/29 vs. Cagliari (H)

1. Juventus (1)

Round 19: Won 2-0 vs. Atalanta (A)

Continuing their unbeaten ways, Juventus successfully went the first half of the season without a loss.

The goals came from unlikely sources on Saturday, as Stephen Lichtsteiner and Emanuele Giaccherini found the goal for the Old Lady in their road victory.

Atalanta have been tough this season, but Juventus are the best team in the league right now. Still, it is close, with Milan sitting only one point behind.

Despite being unbeaten, they have drawn quite a bit and will need to consistently get the three points if they want to fend off the fight from Milan, Udinese and Inter.

Round 20: 1/28 vs. Udinese (H)