Serie A was back after the international break with no shortage of excellent soccer action and unexpected results (catch it all on Paramount+). Only three teams have won all three of their matches and champions Inter Milan are not one of them while Juventus remain winless, and an unexpected name has entered the top five.
Our rankings.
1. Roma (+1)
Jose Mourinho’s men left it late, but Stephan El Shaarawy’s winner over Sassuolo keeps the Giallorossi on a 100% winning run and moves them top of the rankings after Inter dropped points for the first time. The Portuguese is relishing his return to Italian soccer and has picked up where he left off with the Nerazzurri.
2. AC Milan (+2)
The Rossoneri are closing on top spot after a third win from as many outings with Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring on his return and Rafael Leao also on target against Lazio. Not even a missed Franck Kessie penalty could blemish the result with Stefano Pioli’s men still having conceded just once all season.
3. Napoli (+2)
Luciano Spalletti’s men secured a big win over a poor Juventus side and in doing so showed that they have the character to take points in the big encounters this season. Given that Spalletti usually struggles against Juve, it was further proof that there is a chance that Serie A could be witnessing a power shift away from the Turin giants.
4. Inter Milan (-3)
While a draw away at Sampdoria is not disastrous on its own, Simone Inzaghi’s men have dropped points for the first time and are now behind the teams with a 100% winning record. Federico Dimarco and Lautaro Martinez both scored delightful goals, but the hosts managed to peg them back twice.
5. Udinese (+1)
Spezia are not the toughest of opponents, but Luca Gotti’s men were not expected to be performing this well early on and they continue to underline their strong start with a narrow win. Of note is their tight defense which is just one of five to have conceded two goals or less since the start of the campaign.
6. Lazio (-3)
Outclassed by Milan and lucky that Kessie did not punish them further, Mauzrizio Sarri saw his team crumble and did not like what he was being shown by his players which was evidenced by his late dismissal.
7. Fiorentina (+3)
The Viola continue to grow in strength with a win over an Atalanta side which has defied expectations over the past few seasons. Dusan Vlahovic’s penalty brace keep him in early contention among the top scorers in Serie A as Vincenzo Italiano’s men climb the table.
8. Bologna (-)
Sinisa Mihajlovic’s men managed to do just enough for all three points and they remain unbeaten thanks to Mattias Svanberg’s late effort from a Marko Arnautovic assist.
9. Atalanta (-2)
Although they can consider themselves unlucky that Berat Djimsitit had a goal ruled out early in against Fiorentina and they eventually lost, La Dea only went down narrowly. However, it has been a slower than expected start to the season.
10. Sassuolo (-1)
Roma ended their unbeaten start to the season, but it was a close-run match and Sassuolo can feel capable of going toe-to-toe with the big boys.
11. Torino (+5)
A thumping of Franck Ribery’s Salernitana off the back of a strong finish to the transfer window leaps them up the rankings.
12. Sampdoria (+1)
Although they are yet to win, the Inter draw showed that they can now score, and early season indications are that they will be able to hold their own against most.
13. Genoa (+7)
A fantastic comeback win against Cagliari which lifts them off the foot of the table and could kickstart their campaign.
14. Empoli (-3)
Went down 2-1 to Venezia with their recent win over Juve now just a distant memory.
15. Venezia (+4)
It was important to get a win on the board after so many summer changes and now Paolo Zanetti’s men can kick on.
16. Juventus (-4)
A loss to Napoli and no wins so far this season, Massimiliano Allegri probably has more on his plate than he expected, and he needs to turn it around as soon as possible with the Champions League back this coming week.
17. Cagliari (-3)
Threw away a good lead against Genoa and look devoid of quality after slipping to defeat — it could be a long season.
18. Spezia (-1)
Losers again, their opening day point feels a long time ago now and Thiago Motta’s tough job just got even more difficult.
19. Verona (-4)
Eusebio Di Francesco’s men suffered another defeat and while they were not outgunned, they are definitely looking destined to struggle unless they can turn things around quickly.
20. Salernitana (-2)
Despite Ribery’s recent arrival, they were blown away by an improved Torino which shows just how much improvement is needed if they are to drag themselves clear of the relegation zone.