Serie A
Inter Milan and Napoli are the favourites to win the Serie A title, Juventus manager Thiago Motta said ahead of Sunday's league visit to rivals Inter.
Napoli manager Antonio Conte acknowledges that Saturday's home game with lowly Lecce, where he started his playing career, will stir emotions but knows the Serie A leaders have a job to do.
Juventus midfielders Timothy Weah and Nicolo Fagioli are fit to face Lazio in Serie A on Saturday, but Thiago Motta's side are still dealing with an injury crisis with six players unavailable, the coach said on Friday.
Last term Napoli sacked two managers and finished a disappointing 10th but Conte takes his side to Empoli without needing to concern himself with resting players, unlike his main title contenders Inter Milan, Juventus and AC Milan.
After a surprise defeat to Hellas Verona in their opening league match, Napoli have gone unbeaten and sit four points clear of Juventus in the table after a 3-1 home win against Cesc Fabregas' side.
Alvaro Morata, Theo Hernandez and Christian Pulisic sealed the victory with three quick-fire goals just before the break, scoring all of them inside five minutes.
Napoli showed unexpected courage and defended well, Juventus coach Thiago Motta said after the visitors held his side to another goalless draw in Serie A on Saturday.
The Germany international was without a club after his contract with Dortmund ended in July. Details of the transfer were not revealed but Italian media reported the 35-year-old has signed a season-long deal for 2.5 million euros ($2.8 million).
Rafael Leao came off the bench to earn AC Milan a 2-2 draw with Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, but Paulo Fonseca's side are still without a Serie A win this season.
AS Roma have signed defender Saud Abdulhamid from Saudi Pro League Champions Al-Hilal, the Serie A club announced on Tuesday.
Juventus, who kick-started their campaign with a 3-0 win over promoted Como last week, are the only side who kept their points tally at a maximum over the opening two match days of the Italian top flight and lead the standings with six points.
Napoli recovered their spark in an entertaining victory in front of home crowd after they were humiliated 3-0 last week at Hellas Verona, who finished the previous campaign three points above the relegation zone.
Alvaro Morata and Noah Okafor scored in the final minutes for AC Milan to claim a 2-2 draw at home against Torino in their Serie A opener on Saturday, sparing Milan's new manager Paulo Fonseca a loss on his competitive debut.
Inter Milan will begin their title defence without key players Stefan de Vrij and Piotr Zielinski as they kick off the Serie A season at Genoa on Saturday, manager Simone Inzaghi said.
No details of the deal were disclosed, but Italian media said that it was worth around 28 million euros ($30.57 million).
The dispute follows a 2019 Italian antitrust ruling which found that media agencies IMG, MP & Silva and Be4 coordinated in bidding for the rights, restricting competition.
Spaniard Cesc Fabregas has been appointed as head coach of Como, where he is a minority shareholder, after leading them to promotion to Serie A as assistant and interim coach last season, the club said on Friday.
Italian striker Ciro Immobile is leaving Lazio after eight years of service, the Serie A club confirmed on Friday.
No details were given, but Italian media reported the 31-year-old has penned a two-year contract after leaving AS Roma last month, having played 151 matches for the club.
AC Milan has appointed Portuguese Paulo Fonseca as its new head coach on a three-year contract, replacing Stefano Pioli, the Serie A club announced on Thursday.
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