Every Serie A team will be planning their moves ahead of the January transfer window. Some teams will need to add significant reinforcements while others need some minor adjustments for better results going forward. Every team has a weakness and would like to clog that particular hole in the squad.
Atalanta
Atalanta did well to capture Yohan Benalouane and Marcelo Estigarribia last season but currently have the lowest number of goals in Serie A, so their priority would be to sign a goalscorer. The 33-year-old German Denis who scored 44 goals in the past three seasons was expected to lead the line, but he has only found the back of the net four times in this entire campaign. The squad will need him to deliver on a more consistent basis or else Atalanta might be dragged into the relegation battle.
Cagliari
There was plenty of excitement in Sardinia this summer when Zdenek Zeman was hired as the new coach to lead the Cagliari side but the lack of discipline in defence ultimately cost him his job leaving them in the bottom three having conceded 29 goals in the opening 16 matches of the season. Tommasso Giulini, who will not welcome the prospect of becoming a Serie B president within 12 months of taking over, announced the appointment of Gianfranco Zola few days back. The 48-year-old who finished his playing career at Cagliari in 2005 will have a very tough job to steady the sinking ship.
Cesena
Cesena have not won a match since the opening day of the season and have only drawn two games in the last two months. For a newly promoted side with a limited budget, this was expected. Cesena sacked their coach Pierpaolo Bisoli and replaced him with Domenico Di Carlo. On a more positive note, Gregoire Defrel is one of their most interesting players coming through the ranks. In the upcoming January transfer window they would like a prolific striker who can score the goals to get them out of the relegation zone.
Chievo
Chievo reinforced in the summer with the hope that they would switch from their usual three defensive-midfielder setup by adding more flair but so far it has not helped. Chievo need a playmaker in the center of the park who can unlock the opposition backline. There hasna t been much wrong with their defence this season, they have conceded less goals than the likes of Napoli and Fiorentina but only scored 12 goals this season.
Empoli
After securing promotion from Serie B this summer, Empoli have been playing an attractive brand of football. Even though they rely on two senior professionals Massimo Maccarone and Francesco Tavano for their goals, the rest of the team consists of talented youngsters. Twenty-three-year-old Manuel Pucciarelli has looked very promising, while 20-year-old center-back Daniele Rugani has been one of the best defenders in Serie A this season. A proven goalscorer might be very helpful as the fans know it will be hard for Empoli to stave off relegation.
Fiorentina
Fiorentina have been absolutely ravaged by injuries to some of their key players this season. Giuseppe Rossi and Mario Gomez have hardly been able to play a game together while youngsters Khouma Babacar and Federico Bernardeschi are out with injuries as well. Montella would be hoping that Rossi and Gomez regain fitness quickly and lead their charge for the final Champions league spot. Worryingly, first choice keeper Neto will not sign a new contract so a new goalkeeper will be needed.
Genoa
Genoa have made a positive start to the season and must retain their protagonists if they are to clinch a place in Europe. Liverpool made initial inquiries about their talented young goalkeeper Mattia Perin but the Grifoni must not entertain any offers for the shot-stopper and keep hold of him if they want to finish in the top five. Meanwhile, Mauricio Pinilla will leave for Atalanta so a replacement might be handy (maybe Gilardino).
Inter Milan
The struggle for Inter continues as some of the summer signings like Nemanja Vidic or Yann M’Vila haven’t worked out, and the lack of depth is also a major cause for concern. Firstly they need a defendera Or two. And maybe a fullback tooa Or two as Mancini himself admitted. Samir Handanovic is 30 and another year outside the Champions League might force him to pursue his dreams elsewhere.
Alessio Cerci and Ezequiel Lavezzi were both pursed by Inter but seem unlikely to join. They need quality wingers to move to a more adventurous system desired by Mancini.
Juventus
Juventus have been linked with centre-backs despite having five central defenders at the club. Ideally the focus should be on the full-back positions where they need backups for Patrice Evra and Stephan Lichtsteiner.
Also Juventus need a trequartista, a player to sit in the hole behind the front two in Allegria s 4-3-1-2 formation.
Lazio
A serious injury ruled summer signing Santiago Gentiletti out for the season and makeshift defender Lorik Cana plus the traditional ones like Michael Ciani and Diego Novaretti have all failed to convince as a pair with Stefan De Vrij in defence. So they are targeting a central defender this January. Lazio fans will hope the New Year will change Balde Keita and Ogenyi Onazia s attitude around, and they start performing again like last season.
AC Milan
Milan are looking for a defender and a player such as Manchester City defender Matija Nastasic would be ideal. A proper left-back would be very welcome as Mattia De Sciglio is better placed on the opposite flank.
A creative midfielder like Alessandro Diamanti can provide that cutting edge for unlocking opposition defenses. An extra striker (Stefano Okaka) would be good as Fernando Torres has joined Atletico Madrid. Finding buyers for bench warmers like Cristian Zaccardo would be handy as they need to trim the wage bill.
Napoli
Napoli go into the New Year full of confidence after defeating Juventus in the Italian Super Cup. Napoli need an experienced veteran to anchor the back line as Raul Albiol is above average at best, while newcomer Kalidou Koulibaly has impressed but is still very raw and error prone.
Manolo Gabbiadini is most likely joining the squad to take the place of the injured Insigne while Croatian international Ivan Strini will also add quality in the team.
Palermo
Few years ago Palermo had a front line consisting of Edinson Cavani and Javier Pastore. Now, they have a 21-year-old magician by the name of Paulo Dybala who has found the back of the net seven times this season forming a great partnership up front with Franco Vazquez. Palermo would be hoping that the young phenomenon would pen a new deal that would tie him to the Sicilian outfit for a long time.
Parma
Parma sit at the bottom of the Serie A table with relegation looming on the horizon. They need new defenders as they have conceded 36 goals in 16 matches! Another man who is very important to Parma is Antonio Cassano as he is their top scorer with five goals but seems unsettled. Parma board must make sure Cassano remains with the squad or else they face serious trouble.
AS Roma
Despite getting knocked out of a very difficult group in the Champions League, Roma are doing well in Serie A and are placed comfortably in second place. Gervinho will leave for a while because of the African Cup of Nations so Diego Perotti from Genoa would be a perfect replacement.
Goalkeeper Morgan De Sanctis has made some costly blunders so replacing him with Mattia Perin or Simone Scuffet would be a clever move.
Sampdoria
Manolo Gabbiadini looks set to depart for Napoli but the team has been rewarded with an early Christmas present from Argentina by the name of Joaquin Correa. An attacking midfielder like Josip Ilicic with Serie A experience would help. Udinesea s Luis Muriel and Galatasaraya s Goran Pandev are struggling to make an impact at their current clubs but might be good additions if they join the Blucerchiati.
Sassuolo
Sassuolo are probably the only side in Serie A fielding an almost all-Italian starting lineup and they also play an exciting brand of football along with this.A combative midfielder or an experienced defender might help them successfully see out the second half of the season.
Torino
Once Cerci was sold to Atletico Madrid and Immobile to Borussia Dortmund, replacements were needed and Amauri and Fabio Quagliarella were brought in to take up this responsibility. However they have only managed four goals between them so a more prolific striker like Giampaolo Pazzini or Sebastian Giovinco is a priority in the transfer window.
Udinese
Antonio Di Natale has already registered eight goals so far for his club, continuing the impressive goalscoring streak that he started in his early 30s. He’s certainly a figure that Udinese fans would love to see scoring goals forever and give them another few seasons of greatness. For reinforcements, Niang has been linked with a move to the Zebrette from Milan with Muriel likely to leave for Sampdoria.
Hellas Verona
Compared to last season Hellas Verona have been a lot more inconsistent in this campaign. The club have struggled to replace the stalwarts like Jorginho or Juan Iturbe and have been dependent on Luca Toni to drag them away from relegation zone. Verona are currently in 15th place in the table, and must quickly get some points on the board to move up the table. Alessandro Diamanti might be a shrewd acquisition for Andrea Mandorlini as he looks to steer his side clear of the relegation zone.
