The Italian top flight, Serie A, get their season back underway soon post-World Cup. Our article breaks down when they restart, and also the current state of play.
Top flight Italian football took a pause for the World Cup, with the nation having to sit through the football in Qatar without being able to cheer on their team given European champions Italy failed to qualify.
The league took the winter break at a time when the table was beginning to bunch, meaning there are plenty of teams within touching distance of their respective goals this season.
We have witnessed 15 games so far in the 2022/23 season, meaning there are still 23 to go.
When does Serie A restart?
The Serie A season gets back underway in the new year, with a full round of fixtures schedule for the Wednesday the 4th of January.
Teams have no cup games in between the World Cup final and the recommencing of the league season, so many have organised friendlies in that period.
Where can you watch Serie A?
Serie A matches can be watched on BT Sport in the UK, with the channel showing most of the games every gameweek.
All 20 teams play on the same day when the league restarts, kicking off at different times throughout. The first set of fixtures, timings and TV Channels are as follows:
11:30 GMT
- Salernitana v AC Milan - BT Sport 1
- Sassuolo v Sampdoria - BT Sport 2
13:30 GMT
- Spezia v Atalanta - BT Sport 1
- Torino v Verona - BT Sport 2
15:30 GMT
- Lecce v Lazio - BT Sport 2
- Roma v Bologna - BT Sport 1
17:30 GMT
- Cremonese v Juventus - BT Sport 1
- Fiorentina v Monza - BT Sport 2
19:45 GMT
- Inter Milan v Napoli - BT Sport 1
- Udinese v Empoli - BT Sport 2
What does the Serie A table look like?
As things currently stand, it is Napoli who lead the way in Serie A.
Luciano Spalletti's side have an eight point cushion after a scintilating unbeaten season so far, winning 13 and drawing two of their opening 15 matches.
Napoli are bidding to win their first league title since 1990, when Diego Maradona led them to victory.
Reigning champions AC Milan are their closest challengers heading into the restart, with Stefano Pioli's side again going well.
One of Italy's most famous clubs, Juventus, are just a place and two points behind Milan after a run of six straight wins to go into the World Cup break, while Lazio and Inter Milan are a further point back in fourth and fifth respectively.
Atalanta and Jose Mourinho's Roma are three points behind those sides, and need to step up their efforts if they are to qualify for the Champions League.
Udinese occupy eighth, with Torino and Fiorentina rounding up the top 10.
At the other end of the table, Verona are the team who are surprisingly propping up the division, sitting on just five points after 15 games.
I Gialloblu finished last season in a lofty ninth, so it is a shock to see them rooted to the foot of the table and some eight points from safety.
Sampdoria sit second from bottom of Serie A, just a point better off than Verona, so also find themselves in serious relegation danger, with newly promoted Cremonese a further point closer to safety in 18th despite them having failed to win a single game this term (W0 D7 L8).
Spezia occupy the place just above the relegation zone, and currently have a six point cushion to the bottom three, with Lecce two points ahead of them in 16th.
Sassuolo (15th) and Monza (14th) both sit on 16 points, with Empoli (13th) and Salernitana (12th) both one point better off.
Bologna sit 11th on 19 points, out of the top half on only goal difference.
Who is the current Serie A top scorer?
The current leader in the award to be the Serie A top scorer, also called the Capocannoniere which literally translates to 'head gunner', is Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.
The Nigerian forward has nine goals to his name in just 11 appearances, and has a slender one goal advantage over former West Ham forward Marko Arnautovic.
Arnautovic has scored eight times in 13 games for 11th-placed Bologna this season.
A further goal behind the Austrian are a trio of players. Former Everton, Fulham and Leicester winger Ademola Lookman has seven goals for Atalanta this term, the same as Argentina striker Lauturo Martinez (Inter Milan) and Spezia striker M'Bala Nzola.
Below those three, there a seven players with six goals, including last season's Capocannoniere winner Ciro Immobile (Lazio) and Juventus' big money signing Dusan Vlahovic.
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