Bari
Bari have made the signing of Almiron permanent for this season and a full season from the Argentine midfielder should certainly help Bari as in his 18 appearances last season they earned 35 points compared to just 15 in the 20 games he missed. Moreover, half the matches he played were on the road and eight were against top-half finishers.
They’ve also made the loan signing of Italian right-back Andrea Raggi who made 28 appearances for Bologna last season, during which they conceded 37 goals, while in the 10 matches he missed they shipped 18 – a 36% increase without him.
However, they’ve lost their two starting centre-backs, Bonucci and Ranocchia. Bonucci was an ever-present last season while Ranocchia was injured for the second half of the year and in the 22 games he missed their average goals conceded increased by 81% to 1.6 per game and if they’d averaged the 1.18 PPG they did without him for the whole of last season they’d have finished with five points fewer.
Bologna
Bologna have lost the defensive abilities of Andrea Raggi, as well as Roberto Guana who played 32 of their games in midfield last season.
However, they’ve boosted their forward line with Riccardo Meggiorini who appeared 21 times for Bari last season and helped increase their goals scored by 17% per game compared to the 17 matches he missed.
Brescia
Newly promoted Brescia have failed to make any major signings and will currently have to rely on the team that got them promotion.
Cagliari
Cagliari have also failed to make any impact in the transfer market, although the return on loan of striker Robert Acquafresca should be a big boost with the Italian having mad a major impact in his last spell here in 2008/09 when he played 26 of their 38 games with a PPG of 1.50 compared to 1.17 without him. If this 28% improvement were applied to their points total from last season it would have them challenging for a Europa Cup spot.
Catania
The Sicilians have not made any major signings but have lost only one player of note with Jorge Martinez moving to Juventus. The winger played 17 of their games last season and without him their PPG dropped by 35% to just 0.95 PPG. However, this is skewed as 11 of his 17 appearances came at home, although even accounting for this they would have dropped an extra six points had he not been there last term.
Cesena
New boys Cesena have taken a chance and signed Stephen Appiah but whether a veteran player who’s been fit enough to make just 210 appearances in the last 13 football seasons can make a significant impact remains to be seen.
Chievo
The Flying Donkeys have lost key centre-back Mario Yepes to AC Milan but while he’s missed only 13 games in the past two seasons they’ve actually had a slightly better PPG in those matches. However, there team is otherwise fairly unchanged.
Fiorentina
The Viola have managed to hold onto all their top players and will be hoping that Gaetano D’Agostino can bolster their midfield. The Italian has been a key player for Udinese in the past two seasons as he was their leading scorer from midfield. Moreover, if he’d been fit and played the whole of last season with Udinese maintaining the PPG they had in his 18 appearances they’d have won another couple of points.
Genoa
Genoa have been the most active team in the transfer marked as they made signed Portugal goalie Eduardo, Luca Toni from Bayern, Miguel Velosi from Sporting Lisbon and Rafinha from Schalke, while keeping hold of their key players from last season. However, Toni has flopped badly in the past couple of seasons to the point where he barely played last year.
Inter
Inter may have lost Jose Mourinho to Real Madrid but they’ve avoided losing any players with him, as Mario Balotelli has been the only major departure, and he made just 10 appearances last season after clashing with the “Special One”. Meanwhile, Nicolas Burdisso returns from a season on loan at rivals Roma where he played 32 of their 38 games.
Juventus
The Old Lady have said goodbye to former Italian captain Fabio Cannavaro and that should aid their defence as the Italian legend made 26 appearances last season with a PPG of just 1.19 compared to the two points per game they averaged without him – an amount that would easily have earned them third. Christian Poulsen has also moved, to Liverpool, and their PPG was 17% higher when he didn’t play last season.
In place, they have signed Bari’s excellent young defender Leonardo Bonucci, Catania’s Uruguayan international defender Jorge Martinez, Italian international right back Marco Motta who was on loan at Roma last season.
Davide Lanzafame has signed from Parma and the winger appeared to make a major difference last season as Parma lost just one of the 12 matches he played compared to half their other 26, as his impact helped increase their average goals scored by 67%. Further boosting their attack is Simone Pepe who has been a key part of the Udinese midfield and in his 47 appearances for them in the past two seasons their PPG was 35% higher than they managed without him.
Lazio
Lazio have signed Mark Bresciano, who has been a regular first team member for Palermo in the past few seasons. Other than that they will hope Hernanes can deliver big things having been bought from Sao Paolo.
However, their defence has been weakened by the loss of left-back Aleksandar Kolarov to Man City. The Serbian has played 53 of their games in the past two seasons and while his presence has made no difference to their results they have conceded 16% more goals per game in his absence.
Lecce
Lecce return from Serie B but there have been no major comings or goings at the Stadio Via del Mare.
Milan
The Rossoneri have had a very quiet transfer window with their only player of note to arrive being 34 year old Colombian defender Mario Yepes; hardly freshening up an aging squad.
Napoli
Napoli have added to their strike-force by signing striker Edison Cavani from Palermo. The Uruguayan has scored 26 goals in 64 appearances in the past two seasons as he’s missed just 12 games.
Meanwhile, the Azzurri have kept hold of all their key players from last season.
Palermo
As well as selling Edison Cavani to Napoli, Mark Bresciano to Lazio, and allowing Andrea Raggi out on loan, they’ve sold star defender Simon Kjaer to Steve McClaren’s Wolfsburg and first choice central midfielder Fabio Simplicio to Roma.
Kjaer has played 56 of 76 games for Palermo in the past two seasons with a PPG of 1.64 compared to just 1.50 without him – which equates to a loss of five points over a whole season. Simplicio has made 54 appearances in the same period and while they’ve had slightly better results in his absence, they’ve also conceded 21% more goals per game when he’s been missing.
In return the Rosanero have failed to make any major signings and they look to be significantly weaker this season.
Parma
Losing Davide Lanzafame to Juventus and Jonathan Biabiany to Inter has shorn Parma of two of their best attackers from last season but the signing of Sebastian Giovinco from Juve could make a big difference after they finished last year as the lowest scorers in the top half of the table.
The diminutive playmaker is one of the brightest talents in Serie A and in the 13 games he’s played for Juve in the past two seasons they’ve scored 32 goals – an average of an extra goal per game compared with how they’ve fared without him.
Roma
The losses of Marco Motta and Nicolas Burdisso have weakened an already fragile defence. However, the signing of Brazil striker Adriano could reduce the pressure on Francesco Totti up front while Simplicio should strengthen the midfield.
Sampdoria
There has not been much in the way of signings for Sampdoria, but the good news for them is that they’ve held onto the players that earned them European football this season.
Udinese
Losing Pepe and D’Agostino looks to be a big blow for Udinese, while first choice left back Aleksandar Lukovic has moved to Zenit St. Petersburg.
In return, they’ve failed to make any major signings, although keeping hold of Antonio Di Natale and Alexis Sanchez is a major boost for their chances this season.