Forza Italian Football takes a brief look at this season’s Serie A new boys who will be hoping to emulate the achievements of Hellas Verona and Sassuolo by remaining in Serie A come this time next year.
Palermo woke up from the rude awakening of relegation with enough time in reserve to romp to the Serie B title.
It may have looked unlikely as celebrated firer of coaches Maurizio Zamparini brought in Gennaro Gattuso and then dispensed with his services within a few unimpressive weeks, but Giuseppe Iachini was able to harness a squad that retained a number of players from Serie A and the Rosanero ended the season champions by fourteen clear points.
Abel Hernandez, who sat on the bench whilst Uruguay defeated Italy, remains a potent threat for the Sicilian outfit, though Northern Irish strike partner Kyle Lafferty has been dismissed by the club for alleged womanising.
In fact, it is difficult to pick a weakness in Iachini’s side last season. Scoring 62 goals was second only to Modena’s 64, while conceding only 28 was at least seven fewer than every other team. That solidity ensured Palermo were able to keep a high number of clean sheets though it also meant a lot of their games were quite low-scoring and uneventful.
Success, of course, is its own reward and having recorded just two away victories over their last two Serie A seasons (not their worst run ever – from 1949, the Rosanero won just one away game in two campaigns), the traveling supporters were blessed with 13 wins, and a better away record than home for the first time in their history.
With their last Serie A stint lasting nine seasons, Palermo know what it takes to make an impact in the top flight; the fact they finished in the top eight in six of those campaigns providing further proof.
Nor has Zamparini been shy in splashing the cash in order to succeed in the coming season, either. Two €2 million players have joined Iachini’s squad. Andrea Belotti was on loan with the Rosanero last season, but impressed enough to ensure that move became permanent.
The signature of highly rated Bulgarian midfielder Ivaylo Chochev, meanwhile, looks a shrewd piece of business. The former CSKA Sofia starlet attracted interest from a number of big clubs before Palermo tied him down. His creativity from behind the strikers, as well as his robustness to deal with the more industrial attempts to win the ball, suggest an exciting future for the youngster. Should he settle in Sicily early, he may well be a star of the season to come.
Iachini’s side lined up in a 3-5-2 formation in Serie B and having enjoyed such success, there’s little reason to imagine he’d change too much before the start of this campaign. Hernandez and Belotti may have been the stars last season, but such price tag means that the pressure on Chochev to make a success of his debut Serie A campaign is high.
Can They Stay Up? Palermo were undoubtedly the best team in Serie B last season and further strengthening their squad means they should be able to finish above some of Serie A’s lesser lights – a number of clubs saved from the drop only by the weakness of Catania, Bologna and Livorno last time.
