Can Inzaghi keep Inter on top or will Juventus re-establish their dominance

This weekend will see domestic football return to Italy just seven weeks after the men's national team triumphed at the European Championship this summer.

The 2021-22 Serie A campaign is set to be one of the most exciting and unpredictable in seasons to date following an influx of new managers and a range of summer transfers.

Inter Milan will kick off the season on Saturday afternoon against Genoa as they look to retain their Serie A title. However, they will have to do so without Achraf Hakimi who moved to Paris Saint-Germain and Romelu Lukaku who joined Chelsea this summer.

City rivals and fellow title challengers AC Milan meanwhile will have to make do without Euro 2020 hero Gianluigi Donnarumma after the shot-stopper departed for PSG.

Atalanta are, however, one of the only Italian clubs to have benefitted from the summer transfer window, picking up Juan Musso from Udinese and Merih Demiral from Juventus. As a result, they will look to press on from last term's excellent third place finish.

Things will also look different for Roma as ex-Nerazzurri boss Jose Mourinho will return to the Italian top-flight to take the reins from former manager Paulo Fonseca.

The Portuguese coach will look to wipe the slate clean after a horrid run of form in the Premier League during ill-fated spells at Manchester United and most recently Tottenham Hotspur. However, he will have to stay out of the media and focus on getting results if he is going to reassert his managerial superiority.

Meanwhile, Juventus will look to re-establish their dominance and prove that last season was a blip after losing out on the Serie A title for the first time in 10 years to Inter Milan.

Sportsmail have analysed how each team should fare during the 2021-22 season and identified a number of stars to look out for...

1st - Juventus

Having been hit by injuries and erratic form last season, Andrea Pirlo's side only managed a fourth-place finish in the Italian top-flight - missing out on the title for the first time in 10 years.

They suffered disappointing defeats by Crotone, Fiorentina and Verona as Pirlo experimented with tactics in the first half of the season. They did however win the Coppa Italia and Suppercoppa Italiana.

Nevertheless, it wasn't enough to save Pirlo - who was sacked in May and replaced by Massimiliano Allegri.

Allegri will be in for a tough ride this season as Roma, Inter, Milan, Lazio, Napoli, and Atalanta have all having strengthened their team during the summer transfer window.

However, Juventus have signed Manuel Locatelli from Sassuolo and are in the process of bringing Miralem Pjanic in from Barcelona to strengthen their squad ahead of the 2021-2022 season.

Cristiano Ronaldo will also get the support he has previously lacked in the attacking third as Paulo Dybala is finally back in the squad following several injuries.

As a result, they will look to reclaim their crown and initiate another period of dominance on the peninsula.

2nd - Atalanta

Atalanta have exceeded expectations and put Serie A giants in their place over the last couple of years...despite having one of the smallest budgets in the entire league.

After being relegated in 2003, 2005 and 2010, Atalanta climbed out of Serie B to claim a place in the Italian top-flight once again. However, they suffered five bottom half finishes before turning their fortunes around.

It was Gian Piero Gasperini's arrival at Atalanta in 2016 that transformed the ambitions of the club. During the manager's first season in charge, Atalanta managed a fourth-place finish and claimed a spot on the European stage for the first time in almost 20 years.

Now, five years on, Atalanta have cemented a Champions League spot for the third time in a row and established themselves contenders for the Serie A title.

Gasperini's tactics, including his adventurous 3-4-3 formation, have been at the forefront of their success over the years. While Atalanta's recruitment team have also played a role in enabling the club to reach the heights expected of them.

Atalanta have brought in young, talented players such as Merih Demiral to help the club progress into an influential side over the next few years.

Gasperini will be hopeful that the new recruits will help Atalanta retain their title as Serie A’s top scorers with 98 goals from 38 games last season.

While Berat Djimsiti, Robin Gosens, Marten de Roon, Remo Freuler, and Duvan Zapata will bring experience to the squad and ground the youngster starlets.

3rd - Inter Milan

Antonio Conte's Inter Milan dominated Serie A last term, winning their 19th title with four games to spare and securing their first 'Scudetto' since their historic treble under Mourinho in 2010.

However, it is no secret that things have begun to fall apart this summer with Conte leaving the club by mutual consent and several key players opting to forge their own paths elsewhere.

Conte transformed the Nerazzurri into a title-winning side when he joined the club two years ago. During his first season in charge, they finished second in the table before going on to win the title in the following season.

However, having fallen out with Inter’s hierarchy, he left the club just three days after they lifted the Serie A title. He was subsequently replaced by former Lazio boss Simone Inzaghi.

Inzaghi has a track record of giving younger players a chance - which could be vital for Inter Milan this season.

Given the fact Lukaku has left for Chelsea and Hakimi has left for PSG, the likes of Martin Satriano and Lucien Agoume could be awarded a more regular place in the Nerazzurri's starting XI.

Inter will be eager to retain their title this season but it is unlikely they will be able to do so with what seems to be a weaker squad.

4th - Napoli

Champions League qualification will be the primary focus for Napoli this season as the Serie A title is just too far out of the reach.

Nevertheless, they will remain with the hunting pack and will look to push the likes of Inter Milan, Juventus and Atalanta. Should either team slip up, Napoli will be ready and waiting to capitalise.

Napoli will also be under the tutelage of veteran coach Luciano Spalletti who has returned to the club after a two-year absence. The highly renowned Serie A coach will be eager to better the club's fifth-place finish last season.

Spalletti has a history of success in the Italian top-flight, overseeing a highly successful Roma side during the 2004–05 season. He also successfully managed Inter from 2017 to 2019.

However, he has not been in a top-flight hot-seat for two years and will be under enormous pressure to land a Champions League place this term.

Nevertheless, he should be well equipped to get the job done with the likes of Victor Osimhen, Lorenzo Insigne and Hector Lozano in his squad.

5th - Roma

Jose Mourinho has returned to the Italian top-flight to take charge of Roma and he will be looking to turn his side into Serie A title winners after two barren decades.

Roma won their third and last Scudetto in 2001 and their last trophy in 2008, but if anyone can turn their fortunes around it is ‘the special one’.

Nevertheless, Mourinho will start his Serie A campaign off with a difficult opening day clash against Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday night.

It will be his first competitive game since leaving Tottenham in April and he will be hoping to get off to the perfect start.

Mourinho has already had a major impact in the 'Eternal City'. He has signed Tammy Abraham from Chelsea for £34million and proven to be a hit with supporters, who are desperate for success.

Not only has Mourinho brought in some exciting new players this summer but he's also tried to build bridges with his existing stars. Henrikh Mkhitaryan insisted he has buried the hatchet with his new boss after friction between the pair when they were both at Manchester United.

Mourinho will also have to manage without Leonardo Spinazzola for the first few months of the season after the achilles problem he suffered at Euro 2020. However, he has told his team to fully focus on their performances so the Italian's absence isn't too harmful.

6th - AC Milan

The 2021-22 season marks AC Milan's return to the UEFA Champions League for the first time in seven years. However, their success on the European stage has been questioned after their performances in Europa League over the last few seasons.

One of the major difficulties AC Milan will face this season will be the physical demand on the players.

The campaign may be a struggle for the Italian side - who will have a forward line consisting of 39-year-old Zlatan Ibrahimovic and 35-year-old Olivier Giroud.

Additionally, their success in the league last season was primarily down to Gianluigi Donnarumma, who has left the club to join PSG.

Nevertheless, AC Milan have replaced the shot-stopper with Mike Maignan – who was instrumental in helping Lille become the Ligue 1 champions ahead of PSG.

Regardless of goalkeepers, AC Milan’s defensive structure should be sound.  The likes of Simon Kjaer and captain Alessandro Romagnoli will bring in experience, while Fikayo Tomori and Theo Hernandez will bring a young and dynamic element to the squad.

7th - Lazio

Lazio claimed a fourth-place finish in the 2019-20 season, earning a place in the UEFA Champions League for the first time in 13 years. They had hoped to continue such fine form last term but struggled to hit the heights expected of them.

The Italian side finished the Serie A season in sixth place after suffering a difficult start to the campaign by losing three of their first four games. However, they turned their form around and secured victories against Bologna and Torino and a draw against Juventus.

Looking ahead to the new season, Lazio will be eager to hit the ground running and have taken the right precautions to do so.

Lazio have had an eventful summer, making drastic changes to their team. They have signed right full-back Elseid Hysaj, left-winger Felipe Anderson, left-back Dimitrije Kamenovic, and right-winger Luka Romero.

Nevertheless, Lazio are still in need of a central defensive midfielder and right centre-back to round off their squad and push for a top half finish.

8th - Hellas Verona

Hellas Verona finished the Serie A standings in 10th place last season after consistently punching above their weight this season.

However, the club had a history of overachieving under Ivan Juric. Therefore, the pressure will be on Eusebio Di Francesco, who has taken over the reins as their new manager.

It seems unlikely that Di Francesco will be able to match the result attained by his predecessor, but that won't stop him from trying.

Di Francesco has experienced successful spells at Sassuolo and Roma in the past but failed in his most recent roles with Sampdoria and Cagliari.

Therefore, Di Francesco will be under a magnifying glass as he guides Hellas Verona through the 2021-2022 season.

9th - Sampdoria

Sampdoria finished a respectable ninth under the tutelage of Claudio Ranieri last season. However, they will be managed by Roberto D'Aversa for the 2021-22 campaign.

Sampdoria relied heavily on loan signings Antonio Candreva and Keita Balde last season and will continue to do so again. The pair both scored in their first win of the calendar year against Inter Milan.

Fabio Quagliarella was also at the forefront of Sampdoria's attack - scoring 13 league goals. He was also supported by Scandinavian starlets Mikkel Damsgaard and Morten Thorsby.

Given Sampdoria have managed to keep hold of such players, it seems likely that the club will push on from last season. Antonio Candreva and Ernesto Torregrossa will also look to contribute, having arrived on permanent deals from Inter Milan and Brescia respectively.

However, Sampdoria face a difficult start to the campaign, playing four out of last season’s top five by match-day six.

Although, if they emerge with 10 points or more from such fixtures, who knows where D'Aversa's side could go.

10th - Sassuolo

Sassuolo are set to embark on a life without Roberto de Zerbi at the helm. During the manager's tenure from 2018 to 2021, the club developed an exciting style of football that captured the hearts of fans across the nation.

The attractive style in which they played also enticed several Italian talents to the club, with some becoming part of the Azzurri furniture and others being linked with moves to a range of European giants.

Although it seems unlikely that the club will win the Serie A title, Sassuolo will be looking for an outside chance of securing European football. Nevertheless, it seems like to too much of a push to put them in that bracket for the 2021-22 season.

Sassuolo have finished eighth in the Serie A table in the past two seasons. However, they have improved their statistics by upping their overall points tally to 62 last season - finishing level with Roma.

Sassuolo also lost their star striker Francesco Caputo to injury last season. Had he not have been ruled out of action, the Neroverdi may have not suffered that November lull that saw them struggle to put together a string of results.

However, it is Sassuolo's inability to keep goals out that may see them suffer this season. During the 2019-20 campaign they conceded 32 open play goals - ranking them 10th in the league.

The 2020-21 season saw them concede eight more - bringing their tally of goals conceded from open play to 40. Therefore, Sassuolo must look to sure up their defence if they want to succeed this term.

The responsibility will fall to right-back Jeremy Toljan and 22-year-old centre-back Ruan from Gremio.

11th - Fiorentina

Fiorentina have endured a turbulent 12 months, having appointed four different managers over the course of a year. As a result, it will be owner Rocco Commisso who will be to blame if Fiorentina suffer a rocky start to the season.

Nevertheless, Vincenzo Italiano has been appointed at the man who will guide Fiorentina through the chaos. Having previously taken Spezia into the Italian top-flight and kept them there, fans are happy with the decision.

Italiano has promised to deliver an intense, aggressive, attacking style of football, despite the likelihood of them hovering around the bottom half of the table.

All eyes will be on Hamed Traore for the coming season after the club secured his services from Empoli. Fiorentina have also added Matheus Henrique to their midfield - a signing which will excite the fans given he was a part of the Olympic gold medl winning Brazilian squad.

Giacomo Raspadori may also be given the opportunity to secure a regular place in the starting XI as Francesco Caputo and Gregoire Defrel begin to slow down.

However, Fiorentina have lost centre-back Marlon - who joined Shakhtar Donetsk on a permanent deal this summer - and will therefore need to maintain a defensive structure without him.

12 -Genoa

Genoa came dangerously close to being relegated in the 2019-20 season and had hoped to prove themselves in the following campaign.

Genoa managed 11 wins, 12 draws, and 16 defeats to finish the 2020-21 campaign in 11th place. It was loanee, Mattia Destro, who was the main reason Genoa stayed afloat last season - scoring 11 goals and registering an assist in 28 appearances.

One of his most notable performances came against AC Milan, having grabbed a brace in their 2-2 draw.

While Milan Badelj provided strength in midfield after joining on a free following his unsuccessful spell with Lazio.

The 32-year-old utilised a range of passes to give a side that previously struggled to play out the freedom to advance forwards.

As a result, Davide Ballardini must get these men firing to be in with any hope of finishing higher up the table this season.

13th - Bologna

Sinisa Mihajlovic replaced Filippo Inzaghi as Bologna coach in January 2019 and guided them out of the relegation zone to a 10th-place finish in his second spell at the Serie A club.

He turned an otherwise lacklustre Bologna side into a dangerous attacking team that could push for a top half of the table finish on a good day.

However, he did end the 2020-21 season with a seven-match winless streak - losing to the likes of Genoa.

Nevertheless, Mihajlovic will look to utilise Musa Barrow, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Riccardo Orsolini in the 2021-22 season - focusing his tactics around their dynamism and pace.

14th - Venezia

Venezia have been promoted back to Serie A following a 19-year absence and a turbulent period in the club's history.

The club secured their promotion to the top-flight following a 1-1 home draw in the second leg of their playoff final against Cittadella. The last gasp goal in the third minute of stoppage time triggered scenes of jubilation among the players and staff at the Pier Luigi Penzo Stadium.

Venezia's return to Serie A will mean a lot to the club after suffering three bankruptcies in 10 years and fighting their way out of the fourth tier in 2005, 2009 and 2015.

Venezia are on a winning streak, having secured three promotions in six seasons. But, it is unlikely that the club will pull off a sensational top of the table finish this season.

Instead, they will focus on maintaining their place in the Italian top-flight after working so hard to get there.

15th - Udinese

Udinese were another club that looked at changing their manager heading into the 2021-22 campaign. Luca Gotti's future at the club was up in the air after his contract expired in June.

There were questions over whether he would be handed a contract extension after  an extremely disappointing campaign.

However, negotiations with their other potential targets never materialised - forcing the club to stick with Gotti.

As a result, Gotti - who spent most of his career as an assistant manager to Roberto Donadoni and Maurizio Sarri - will be under pressure to perform this season.

The Italian manager has a reputation for conservative, defensive football which may not sit well with the squad this season.

Gotti has a strong attacking trio in Rodrigo De Paul, Kevin Lasagna and Stefano Okaka and must find a way to utilise their skill sets this season.

Gotti will also be under more pressure this season, having lost Rodrigo De Paul to Atletico Madrid this summer.

Given the challenge the Italian manager is set to face, it seems unlikely that they will match their previous thirteenth and fourteenth-place finishes this season.

Instead, it is likely that they will sit further down the table, occupying 15th place.

16th - Spezia

Spezia Calcio have been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons ahead of the 2021-2022 season. The Serie A side have been slapped with a two-year transfer ban by FIFA for illegally signing underage players from Nigeria.

Spezia were promoted to the top-flight last year for the first time ever and finished a creditable 15th but their bid to retain their new-found status has been made far harder by them being unable to register new signings.

The two-year suspension is the longest transfer ban FIFA have ever handed out while the international governing body also fined Spezia 500,000 Swiss Francs (£393,000).

However, they have been able to sign new players this summer - with the ban due to kick in from January 2022 - but given the financial ramifications of the given fine, Spezia have done very little shopping.

17th - Torino

Ivan Juric has left Hellas Verona in the hands of former Sassuolo coach Eusebio Di Francesco to join Torino for the 2021-2022 season.

Juric was widely praised for winning the play-off with fifth-placed Hellas Verona in the second division before finishing ninth in the Serie A standings for the 2019-20 season.

The Croatian boss managed to sustain his success with Verona in his third season in charge, before being pinched by Torino.

He will now look to transfer such success into the team that finished the 2020-21 season in 17th place.

However, in order to do so he must develop a well-rounded squad that does not rely on just Italy striker Andrea Belotti - who is out of contract next summer.

18th - Cagliari

Leonardo Semplici will take charge of Cagliari heading into the 2021-22 season. The Italian football manager has a history of success and will look to maintain such a status by keeping the club afloat in Serie A.

Semplici's winning streak started at SPAL in 2016 when he guided the club to back to back promotions from Serie C to Serie A in just two seasons.

Semplici also won six of 15 matches when he first joined Cagliari in February - taking the club out of the relegation zone to finish the league in 14th place.

Cagliari have also brought in several important places to strengthen their squad heading into the season. However, it seems unlikely that they will be able to avoid relegation this term.

19th - Empoli

Empoli are another club that will head into the season with a new manager at the helm. Having lost Alessio Dionisi to Sassuolo they have drafted in Aurelio Andreazzoli to take charge of the club for a third time.

The veteran manager has worked alongside some impressive names, including Luis Enrique and the legendary Zdenek Zeman.

However, his track record in leading a top-flight side on his own is somewhat underwhelming. Andreazzoli took charge of Genoa in 2019 but lasted just nine games before being sacked.

As a result, Andreazzoli will be looking to prove his worth with Empoli this season. However, it seems unlikely that he will be able to avoid the relegation zone with these underdogs.

20th - Salernitana

Salernitana have an interesting history, having been in and out of bankruptcy. However, they hope to make the headlines for the right reasons this season.

The current squad created history at the club after earning promotion into Serie A for the first time since 1999. They did so by beating Pescara 3-0 on the final day of the 2020-21 campaign.

However, Fabrizio Castori's men will be looking to cement their place in the top-flight and avoid a repeat of history after the 1999 squad were immediately relegated back down.

Nevertheless, it seems unlikely that they will hold their own in the Italian top-flight this season given they are already running into issues.

President Claudio Lotito must sell the club to allow Salernitana to compete in Serie A. As it stands, Lotito is also the chairman of Lazio - causing a conflict of interest.