Serie A: Picking a Team of the Season

Juventus lifted their 28th Scudetto on Sunday.  The Turin giants were deserved winners of the 2011-12 season, finishing an undefeated campaign with a 3-1 victory over Atalanta.  Now the hard part comes for Juve.  Maneuvering in the offseason transfer market to reinforce a squad that's losing some key players to age and faces the task of attempting to repeat this year's success but with the addition of European football on the calendar.  

The hard part for us, the fans, is dealing with three and half months without Italian football.  The Euros and the Olympic tournament will have to go a long way in satisfying the football diet this summer.  But before we look forward, let's look back at this exciting season and the best players at each position in the Serie A team of the year.

Best XI of 2011-12

Congratulations to Juventus on their 28th Serie A title and an undefeated season. Juve players take up five of the starting spots on my roster including three-fourths of the midfield.  The other starting spots went to players from AC Milan (2), Inter, Catania, Napoli and Udinese (all one each). 

The hardest players to leave off were Fabrizio Miccoli (Palermo), Stevan Jovetić (Fiorentina), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Napoli), Danilo (Udinese) and Alessandro Diamanti (Bologna).  All of whom had tremendous seasons but were, in my opinion, not as strong as the players included here.

Thanks to whoscored.com for player and team statistical information.

Goalkeeper- Gianluigi Buffon

The champion's strength starts right from the back.  Buffon simply sets the standard in Italy, a country known for its goalkeeping pedigree.  

He's a bedrock for Juve, having stayed with the club through the calciopoli scandal and demotion to Serie B in 2006-07.  While the 34-year-old may not be as dominant as he was in the mid-2000's, he's still amongst the world's best at his position.  

Many might remember Buffon's clearance blunder which cost Juve a win against relegated Lecce and gave Milan a chance to overtake Juventus for the title.  However, the next week, as Milan crashed to defeat in their city derby, the Italian national keeper kept a clean sheet in Juve's 2-0 title-clinching win against Cagliari.  

Buffon guided his team throughout the year and proved essential in several pivotal moments of the campaign.  The penalty save on Francesco Totti to preserve a 1-1 draw away to Roma back in December comes immediately to mind.  Also his record against Juve's main rivals and challengers at the top of the table is remarkable. Against Milan, Udinese, Inter and Lazio, Buffon conceded only one goal in the each of the two league fixtures.

On the Bench: Emiliano Viviano (Palermo) 

Right-Back- Maicon

Can we now include Maicon in the illustrious class of Brazilian wing backs? His right foot is just as powerful as Roberto Carlos' left.  His speed's just as menacing as Cafu's.  I'm sure many Brazilians are hopeful he can repeat the glories of his countrymen at the next World Cup.

At Inter, Maicon faced no competition for playing time and was truly in a class of his own this season. The stunning strike in the Milan derby will long live in the lore of that rivalry but his consistency all year long was the important factor for a team desperate for a steady force.

On the bench: Ignazio Abate (AC Milan)

Left-Back- Giorgio Chiellini

As much a leader and fan favorite for Juventus as Buffon, Chiellini is the heart of a team that prides itself on defense.  No surprise to see that the team conceded the fewest goals (20) in Serie A, especially staggering when their next closest competitor in that category, AC Milan allowed 13 more.

Chiellini fits naturally in the central defense but such is the versatility of the lanky 27-year-old Italian international that he played on the left for the larger share of games this year.  It was a concession to the Barzagli-Bonucci partnership in the central defense and another display of the Chiellini's team-first attitude which so endears him to his manager and fans.

On the bench: Yuto Nagatomo (Inter) 

Center Back- Thiago Silva

The Brazilian continues to develop into one of the better defenders in the Italian top flight. He's confident with the ball at his feet as well as winning duels in the air. Importantly, his timing is also impeccable since he only picked up two yellow cards all year in the tightly officiated Serie A.

In addition to neutralizing the oppositions' best striker, Silva also contributed three goals to Milan's campaign that, while falling short of winning the title, saw them challenge until the penultimate week of the season.  Thiago Silva is continuing to prove the praise of his world class talent and looks to become the next legendary stronghold in the Milan back line.  

On the bench: Andrea Barzagli (Juventus)

Center Back- Nicola Legrottaglie

Big central defenders who provide stability at the back but can also be an offensive aerial threat, especially from set pieces, are a hallmark of the Italian game.  Legrottaglie, Catania's veteran defender, fits the mold perfectly.  

With five goals and leadership presence in the central defense, Nicola had the Sicilian outfit in the top half of the table for a good portion of the 2011-12 season.  Catania's home record was fifth best in the league based in large part to their stingy defense which conceded only 15 goals to visiting sides.

On the bench: Davide Astori (Cagliari)

Right Wing- Christian Maggio

Christian Maggio often gets overlooked due to the company he keeps on the football pitch.  When the three tenors of Serie A:  Cavani, Lavezzi and HamŠik are your teammates that tends to be the case. However, underestimating the impact of Maggio on Napoli's potent counter attacking game is a perilous proposition for any opposing manager.

Maggio was a threat from the right flank in the league and during Napoli's return to Champions League play.  He's got the speed to quickly turn defense to offense with the ball at his feet.  And he's got the accuracy on crosses to find one of the potent play makers on the roster. Not surprisingly, Napoli's poorest run of form occurred when the winger was sidelined with injury for a good portion of February and March. 

On the bench: Jonathan Biabiany (Parma)

Left Wing- Mirko Vučinić

The Montenegran attacking midfielder is yet another important cog in the Juventus midfield.  A summer transfer from Roma, Vučinić contributed nine goals and eleven assists for the champions.

He was a skilled distributor up front and seemed to only get strong as the season wore on, scoring three goals in the last three weeks of the season.

On the bench: Pablo Armero (Udinese)

Central Midfield- Andrea Pirlo

Juventus and Italy's perennial playmaker, Andrea Pirlo continues to create on a football pitch.  This was his first season with the Bianconeri after a ten years and 284 appearances with Milan.  

As smooth as ever, Pirlo orchestrated Juve's offense from the midfield and notched four goals of his own.  His experience and leadership were felt throughout a roster of new acquisitions and youthful talent. He's probably the closest extension of a manager on the pitch as time and time again he picked apart the opposition with sublimely placed passes.

Pirlo finished the year with 13 assists, first in the league.  His pass completion percentage was nearly 87 percent, successfully finding a teammate on the end of an average of 86 passes per game.  All this after he was viewed as past his prime by those who chose not to renew his contract in Milan.  Juventus and fans of the most popular club in the Serie A will be glad to have Pirlo around for the title defense and Champions League action next year.

On the bench: Riccardo Montolivo (Fiorentina) 

Central Midfield- Arturo Vidal

Arturo Vidal was Pirlo's main partner in the Juventus midfield.  He won the balls and turned things over to Pirlo from there.  The Chilean international, only 24 years of age, may still develop into more of an attacking threat given the versatility he's shown with his former clubs, Colo Colo in Chile and Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga.  

In his first year with Juventus, Vidal scored seven goals in 33 appearances and added another three assists.  His aggression as Juve's primary ball winner was clear, picking up 14 yellow cards and one red. An aerial duel winner as well, Vidal truly emerged as Juve's workhorse in the middle.  Vidal deserves an equal amount of credit as Pirlo for establishing Juve's dominant possession game (they averaged a 61.1 percent possession advantage).  The box-to-box midfielder looks like a major Serie A presence for years to come.

On the bench: Javier Zanetti (Inter)

Striker- Antonio Di Natale

No single player accounted for a larger percentage of his teams goals than Di Natale, scoring 23 of Udinese's 52. The 34-year-old continues to find the back of the net for his club and country. He led the northern club to a third place finish in Serie A and back into the Champions League for a second straight season.

National team coach Cesare Prandelli has just named him to the provisional Euro 2012 roster hoping his form continues into the summer tournament.

Di Natale is clinical finisher in a league with a burgeoning supply of them. But he also contributed to Udinese's success with seven assists and remained injury-free throughout the long season.

On the bench: Edinson Cavani (Napoli)  

Striker- Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Zlatan was undoubtedly the Serie A's best player during the 2011-12 season.  He led the league in scoring with 28 goals and chipped in with six assists.  In Milan's eight Champions League games, Ibra scored five and assisted on four.  He was the focal point of Milan's attack, able to create his own opportunities on the ball or find space behind defenders on the break.

The big Swede's swagger may irritate purists, opponents, and Inter fans, but there's no denying that his playing career has reached new peaks this year.  Beyond Italy, Ibrahimovic's exploits have garnered him a broader audience and the recognition that he's amongst the top ten best players currently playing the game.

On the bench: Sebastian Giovinco (Parma)