Serie A: 5 Things We Learnt from Week 12

Jack Alexandros RathbornNov 30, 2011

Slightly later that normal, here are the five things we learnt from Serie A this week.

This was deliberately delayed to accommodate the splendid match between Napoli and Juventus last night that had all Calcio fans engrossed.

It has been one of the most entertaining weekends for a while.

It kick-started early with fresh day of Friday to begin the week's action, as Udinese hosted in-form Roma.

The Friulani bounced back from defeat in stunning fashion to secure a win before they embarked on their latest Europa League adventure.

It is something I believe can help the league develop, by spreading the fixtures from Friday to Sunday, or even having a regular Monday night fixture.

It allows fans to watch more games and some teams they would not necessarily choose to watch normally.

This week has been a success in this regard, and it will be intriguing to see how this project continues this week, with Genoa hosting Milan.

This move is in part done to assist the sides playing in Europe, but I feel that even when European football is not on the agenda for that particular week, a similar schedule could be a great success.

Napoli: Are the Partenopei Too Dependent on Cavani?

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Napoli have had a mixed few days, as they experienced both sides of a draw.

The first came against the impressive Atalanta, who showed little respect for their illustrious opponents, who had, just days earlier, charmed all of Europe with a phenomenal display to defeat Manchester City.

German Denis, El Tanque, did it again, latching onto a through ball to smash home one-on-one with Morgan De Sanctis.

The Argentine, experiencing the form of his life at 30 years old, had earlier smashed the bar with a ridiculously acrobatic volley that was absurdly difficult to get over, as the crowd gave a standing ovation for a shot that did not result in a goal.

Napoli thrive on these sorts of atmospheres and Ezequiel "El Pocho" Lavezzi was sent on in search of a victory for an Azzurri side that was clearly suffering a hangover from their Champions League exertions earlier in the week.

In the dying embers of the game, Lavezzi picked up a loose ball on the edge of the area, volleying it back towards goal, where Edinson Cavani was able to angle a side-foot volley in the 94th minute to break Nerazzurri hearts.

The question would now come up whether Napoli were dependent on El Matador, who had earlier been the protagonist in the Champions League with both goals against City.

Napoli would have the opportunity to prove this was not the case on Tuesday night, as they took on the league leaders Juventus without their talisman who picked up an injury hours before kickoff.

Napoli stormed into a two-goal lead after Marek Hamsik, earlier amended for his error of missing the penalty, wrongly instructed to retake, with a stooping header from point-blank range before Cavani's replacement, Goran Pandev, slipped past Giorgio Chiellini to fire home on the angle.

Juventus came out in the second half with a point to prove, and immediately responded with a slick move finished by Alessandro Matri, who swept home from close range.

Napoli regained a two-goal lead, though, as Pandev, again, finished a half chance on the turn inside the area to send the San Paolo into ecstasy.

Juventus are made of sterner stuff these days, and responded magnificently with Marcelo Estigarribia poking home from a similar position to where Matri had scored from earlier, as questions were asked of De Sanctis, who rushed off his line perhaps too early for both goals.

Simone Pepe grabbed the equaliser with 10 minutes remaining to share the spoils in an enthralling game.

Returning to the question as to the importance of Cavani, he is clearly one of the most dangerous strikers in Europe.

I believe Napoli could cope without him to an extent, given Pandev's display against the Bianconeri. The side did not draw due to a lack of firepower up front in the absence of Cavani, rather due to Mazzarri taking off the two-goal hero for Mario Santana thinking the game was won, therefore encouraging Juventus to take the initiative.

So Napoli can feel confident that if they stick to their principles and defend properly, the side is more than capable of continuing their march towards the Champions League places and the next round of the Champions League without El Matador.

Juventus: Conte Genius or Lucky to Escape Naples with Draw & Pepe Becoming Vital

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Antonio Conte, for my mind, might just be legitimately under scrutiny for the first time this season after the 3-3 draw in Naples last night.

The Bianconeri, without the impeccable Claudio Marchisio, came from two goals down, twice, to salvage a valuable point in one of the most difficult places to visit.

The question remains whether he did so with tactical genius or just being plain lucky.

I believe it is the latter, given that he got his starting lineup horribly wrong, for my mind.

The replacement for Marchisio was the Paraguayan Marcelo Estigarribia, who did reasonably well, including scoring the vital second goal that galvanised the Turin giants after they had gone behind by two goals again.

But he was not the right choice to start the game, as the formation that has been behind Juventus' recent great run has been the 4-3-3, with Marchisio and Arturo Vidal flanking the evergreen Andrea Pirlo.

Without the Azzurri international, Marchisio, Conte opted to shuffle the pack and revert back to a 4-2-4, which had been his formation of choice at the beginning of the season.

This only handed the initiative to Napoli in the midfield, as they were completely outnumbered, suggesting that Michele Pazienza would have been the better choice as a like-for-like replacement.

It is true to say that they came back magnificently, but I would again argue this was from Walter Mazzarri's own doing, rather than a change of tactics by Conte.

Mazzarri took off the two-goal hero Goran Pandev after his second goal much too prematurely, as he was causing the Bianconeri defence all sorts of problems.

Napoli began to sit deeper, and this helped Juventus to salvage the point.

On a more positive note though, Simone Pepe is becoming something of a gladiator for the Old Lady, as he has scored two vital goals in successive games, quickly becoming one of the more vital components of this Scudetto-chasing side.

His goal at Lazio was taken with aplomb, guiding in a controlled finish from a quick square by Alessandro Matri.

Last night's goal was even more impressive, as he slalomed his way towards the penalty area and shifted the ball to his right to create the few inches of space needed to whip the ball into the corner to earn his side a valuable point and remain two points clear at the top of the table.

Palermo: The Stadio Renzo Barbara Is the Most Feared Fortress of Europe

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Palermo claimed another victory at home this weekend with a 2-0 victory over Fiorentina, led by Delio Rossi for the second time since Siniša Mihajlović was sacked.

Denis Mangia, the Palermo manager, has delivered the fans a remarkable record of winning every home game so far this season.

The Rosanero have scored 16 times and conceded six in their six games at the Stadio Renzo Barbara this season, claiming the maximum 18 points.

This is a remarkable record at home that is also matched by Udinese.

What makes the Palermo record more impressive is that they are clearly not as good as Udinese are right now.

The Rosanero have lost every single game away from home in Serie A, and have not even scored a goal.

So to think that a side with that away form was capable of being such daunting opponents at home is remarkable, and suggests that it could be the toughest away trip in Europe.

Perhaps it is the travel of every opponent, except Catania, faced with a flight or a long drive before a ferry crossing.

More likely is the intimidating atmosphere that is created at the Renzo Barbara, with passionate Sicilians ferociously supporting their side and stifling the away side's usual style of play as they crumble under the pressure of this football cauldron.

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AC Milan: Thiago Silva Is the Best Center Back in Europe

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Thiago Silva is once again having an incredible season personally, with a string of superb performances.

These lead me to suggest that he is the best center back in Europe now, after proving he is capable of consistently doing this, all the way back to last season.

The Brazilian star is the rock of the Milan defence, and has an array of skills unrivalled by somebody in his position.

There is hardly anything the former Fluminense defender cannot do, as he showed on Sunday evening.

We all know he has pace and a terrific ability to read the game and anticipate danger, but he is also contributing regularly at the other end now.

Thiago Silva nonchalantly strides out from the back, and can continue to dribble towards goal if not closed down by the opposition, but he is also capable of distributing the ball from centre back with laser-like accuracy.

Furthermore, he is now becoming a goal threat, as he showed against Barcelona with his head before showing he is superb finisher of the ball against Chievo this weekend, stroking the ball into the bottom corner from outside the penalty area.

Rumours are abound that Barcelona are preparing a mega-bid, but it will take an awful lot of money to prize away yet another superb Milan defender.

Inter Milan: Ranieri Slowly Moving Nerazzurri Back to Champions League Places

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Claudio Ranieri is slowly putting the pieces in place for this Inter Milan side to compete for the Champions League places again.

After a torrid start to the season, the Nerazzurri have back-to-back wins in the league for the first time this season, thanks to a last-minute Luc Castaignos goal away to Siena this weekend.

Ranieri has plenty of young talents to rejuvenate this squad, so optimism is swelling in the bars tifosi Nerazzurri, with the likes of Castaignos, Philippe Coutinho, Ricardo Alvarez, Joel Obi, Jonathan and Emiliano Viviano all likely to feature in the future.

These players can either be integrated into the side or used as weights in transfer deals to reshape the side in other areas.

It may not be spectacular at the moment, but Ranieri is certainly steadying the ship after ensuring the Nerazzurri progress to the knockout stage of the Champions League as group winners.

Things are starting to look bright for the Nerazzurri, but they must safely negotiate the final five games before the Christmas break to be within striking distance of the top three. They are currently 10 points away.

Home games against Udinese and Fiorentina, before away trips to Genoa and Cesena, are the next fixtures, then a home clash against Lecce before the break.

Inter have finally generated some momentum in the league, combined with their excellent Champions League form, so the side will be in a confident mood as we approach the final stages of the first half of the season.