Serie A

Who Impressed And Who Failed Miserably In Serie A This Season?

This week, most people will be reading, talking and writing about Francesco Totti, who has now retired after playing his final game for Roma. But while everyone’s focused on Totti, let’s consider the rest of the season, indulging in one of the favorite pastimes of the calcio connoisseur: going over every detail of the previous 38 matches and putting people and teams in ranked lists.

There will be plenty of time to dissect Totti’s career in the future. Right now, we need to think about who has really impressed us this season and (more importantly) who has failed to impress.

Francesco Totti Plays His Final Game, Everybody Breaks Down

Well, that’s that then. Football made a good run at it, but it's over now. Francesco Totti has played in his final professional match, and while it went exactly as Roma had hoped sporting-wise (they achieved direct qualification to next season’s Champions League), it was easily the worst day in the club’s history.

Moise Kean Becomes First Player Born In 21st Century To Net In Europe’s Top Five Leagues

Juventus and Bologna wrapped up their Serie A campaigns with a meaningless match featuring the champions-elect and the side in 15th. For a match with absolutely nothing riding on it, this game still had its moments.

The first was provided by Bologna midfielder Saphir Taider. The Algerian international opened the scoring in the 52nd minute with this sensational effort from distance.

Juventus Capture Sixth Straight Serie A Title, On Verge Of Historic Treble

With a victory against Genoa next Sunday, second place AS Roma will eclipse their highest-ever point total in Serie A with 87. However, Juventus’ 3-0 victory over Crotone today gave them 88 points on the season heading into the final match day, confirming them as Serie A champions for the sixth straight season. They’re simply untouchable in Italy.

Watch Gianluigi Buffon Get Beat By The Only Shot He Hasn't Seen In His 22-Year Career

You've got to hand it to AS Roma's Stephan El Shaarawy. We've never seen a shot make Gianluigi Buffon look all of 39 years of age, but he accomplished it with this absurd effort in Roma's 3-1 victory over Juventus on Sunday. The goal ended up being the match-winner and kept Roma's fading title hopes alive. El Shaarawy has been in fantastic form for his side after scoring a great goal against AC Milan last weekend.

As Serie A Grinds To A Conclusion, The Status Quo Refuses To Change

The shameful specter of racist abuse in Italian football reappeared on May 6 after Torino’s match against Juventus. Not a week after the footballing authorities abandoned their duty of care regarding Sulley Muntari, Medhi Benatia noticed racist comments being made in his ear by a technician during a live, on-air interview following the 1-1 draw. Stopping abruptly, he demanded to know who had referred to him as a “Moroccan piece of sh*t”. 

Sulley Muntari’s One-Match Ban After Being Racially Abused Is A Disgrace

Italian football has a crisis on its hands and I’m not even sure they realize how serious it is. For the better part of a decade now, with the exception of Juventus, Italy’s Serie A has been in decline. League officials would like to blame the country’s aging stadiums or the lack of a lucrative television deal - and those are valid points - but the real issue is much more serious. 

Italy does not have a football problem. Italy has a race problem. 

Francesco Totti Will Retire At The End Of The Season

Despite calls from AS Roma coach Luciano Spalletti and fellow professionals to have the club extend Francesco Totti’s contract another year, new Roma sporting director Monchi has confirmed that plans for this to be Totti’s last season had been put in place before he was appointed on April 24.

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