Enzo Maresca wants backup for Nicolas JacksonChelsea monitoring Napoli’s Victor Osimhen Enzo Maresca has told Chelsea to avoid signing players for the sake of it, but the head coach said he would like to bring in a new striker before the transfer window shuts. Chelsea have embarked on another spending spree this summer, adding 10 players to their squad, and they are looking to make a host of sales before next Friday’s deadline. Outcasts including Raheem Sterling, Trevoh Chalobah and Ben Chilwell are working away from the first-team group and Maresca is keen not to be landed with any more selection problems. Continue reading...

If the four-time Scudetto winner was supposed to cure Napoli’s ills, a 3-0 defeat to Verona soon nixed that idea Antonio Conte was ready to lead by example. Asked what fans could expect from Napoli this season, during his official unveiling as manager in June, he promised the team would have “una faccia incazzata” – “a pissed-off face”. On the eve of their season opener against Verona, he showed up with one of his own. “I expected to find a better situation,” he said, as he assessed his team’s readiness for the new campaign. “I thought there might be some positive surprises [to go with the challenges] but I’ve struggled to find any.” Continue reading...

The managerial mix-up in Italy poses questions but with Simone Inzaghi staying put, Inter are still the team to beat The faces are familiar, but the places all jumbled up. To preview this Serie A season feels like having a gossipy catch-up with friends who lost track of each other’s lives. Remember how Thiago Motta swept Bologna off to Europe? Oh, that’s over: he’s with Juventus now. Bologna got together with Vincenzo Italiano instead, after he left Fiorentina. They turned to Raffaele Palladino but that left Monza with nobody, until, of all people, Alessandro Nesta shows up on the scene. Please, we haven’t even got to the juicy part. Antonio Conte, he’s back. And get this, he’s with Napoli. Continue reading...