After both Milan and Napoli ended up losing last weekend, many calcio followers were curious to see if the Rossoneri and the Partenopei could recover. Meanwhile, Juventus supporters were eager to see the Bianconeri get back to winning ways following their humiliating 4-0 loss to Chelsea earlier in the week, while Inter fans were eager to see how the Nerazzurri will continue to close the gap as they aim to defend their Scudetto title. And after Roma's win over Genoa, people certainly were keen to see if the Lupi would make it another win on the bounce, or if the defeat of the Grifone was just a mere flash in the pan.
Here's all you need to know following this weekend's Serie A action.
Top five teams in Serie A up to November 29
Here's how the table looks after last weekend's matches
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Here's how the race looks for the title of top goalscorer in Serie A
Top Serie A headlines, stats, and other facts
Roma's Tammy Abraham joins elite club: Over the weekend, the English striker scored Roma's only goal to give the Giallorossi a vital 1-0 win over Torino. That brings his total to four so far for the season, and in doing so, the former Chelsea starlet has become the first English player to score at least four goals in Italy's top flight since Jay Bothroyd did so for Perugia during the 2003/04 season.
Milan's surprise loss: The Rossoneri lost 3-1 to Sassuolo at the weekend, making it back to back losses for Stefano Pioli's men for the first time this season. In fact, these games are Milan's first two defeats after an excellent start to the campaign, and the defeat to the Neroverdi - who've caused their fair share of frustration for Milan in the past - marks the first time Milan have lost from a leading position since April. The Rossoneri had taken a 1-0 lead, only to see it all fall apart and Alessio Romagnoli, who scored his team's only goal, end up being sent off.
A new leader emerges in Capocannoniere race: Fiorentina's Dusan Vlahovic may not have been able to prevent his team from falling to a 2-1 loss to Empoli in last weekend's Tuscan Derby, but the Serbian striker still got on the scoresheet. With that, he's now moved ahead of Ciro Immobile in the battle for the coveted Capocannoniere prize.
Juventus set unwanted record: The Bianconeri lost 1-0 to Atalanta at home - for the first time since October 1989. Duvan Zapata, who's scored eight times in his last 11 meetings with Juve across all comps, proved to be the hero on the night for La Dea fans and ensured that Gian Piero Gasperini's side made it three wins on the spin and four from their last five Serie A matches.
Marko Arnautovic continues to lead the way: Bologna have had a pretty solid campaign so far, and a big part of that has been the good form of key striker Marko Arnautovic. The Austrian international, who's of Serbian heritage, netted the only goal for his side against Bologna, and in doing so, becomes the first Austrian international to score six or more goals in Serie A since Walter Schachner and Anton Polster scored nine for Avellino and Torino respectively during the 1987/88 campaign.
A midweek batch of games is in store - what to watch from Nov 30th to Dec 2nd
Serie A fans are certainly spoiled for choice, as there's going to be 20 games played in just the span of about a week.
Here's what you'll want to catch during the midweek round:
Salernitana vs Juventus: Juve were really unfortunate not to be able to beat Atalanta last time out, but Massimiliano Allegri's men will get a shot at redemption as they travel to face struggling Salernitana. The hosts have won just twice all season and sit bottom of the table, so this should present a great chance for Juve to get some much needed points on the board.
Bologna vs Roma: The Giallorossi earned a gritty 1-0 win over Torino and will now look to make it three wins in three when they travel to face Bologna. However, the Gialloblu have been in solid form this season, and like Roma, have won three of their last five games - so this game could present a potentially tricky test for Jose Mourinho's side. Especially considering the solid form key Bologna striker Marko Arnautovic has been in recently.
Inter vs Spezia: Simone Inzaghi's men have been going from strength to strength lately, and could potentially leapfrog Milan into second spot should they pick up max points against Spezia. A win for the Nerazzurri would also put pressure on Napoli, who don't play their own fixture against plucky Sassuolo until later in the day.
Genoa vs Milan: It's safe to say that the Rossoneri will be desperate to avoid a third straight loss, as that would see them possibly fall further behind Napoli and even be overtaken by bitter cross-town rivals Inter in the league standings. Milan fans will also hope that the team's two straight defeats are just a minor blip and not the sign of a mid-season title challenge collapse - as last term, Milan did lead the way, only to suffer this same kind of collapse in early 2021 and end up finishing second behind Inter.
Sassuolo vs Napoli: League leaders Napoli won't take Sassuolo lightly, as they did manage to beat Milan 3-1 at the Stadio San Siro last time out. That's despite the Neroverdi really failing to impress this season, but they, as all Serie A fans know, do have that knack for managing to cause upsets against bigger teams, and Napoli will know that Sassuolo's confidence has now gone back up following their latest scalp last weekend.
Top Serie A matches: December 4 - December 6, 2021
After the midweek rounds finish, there will again be some interesting ties to tune into this upcoming weekend. These include:
Milan vs Salernitana: Will the Rossoneri welcome the basement boys having avoided a third straight defeat following their mid-week Genoa tie? Or will Milan find themselves in a rather awkward predicament in their first home game following their shock loss to Sassuolo?
Roma vs Inter: A fascinating tussle awaits as Jose Mourinho will welcome Inter, who just so happen to be the last team he managed in Italy prior to now. Mourinho is also a legend amongst Nerazzurri fans, as he successfully guided the Italian powerhouse to a Treble in 2010, making them the first Italian team in football history to achieve this.
Napoli vs Atalanta: Another tricky test will be on the cards for Luciano Spalletti's side as Atalanta have been keen on proving to everyone they're no fluke side. La Dea continue to determinedly chug along and to do their utmost best to ensure they again secure Champions League football for themselves, and they certainly will be fancying their chances to nick some points off the present table leaders.
Juventus vs Genoa: We can assume that Juventus will welcome Genoa having picked up a much needed win over Salernitana, but that's not an absolute guarantee. Either way, the Bianconeri will be looking to make amends after losing 1-0 to Atalanta in their prior home tie.
Make sure you don't miss out on these key games and stay on top of all the action by checking out our bespoke Serie A match page.
