After a break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Serie A will resume action on Wednesday, January 4th. It joins the likes of the Premier League, La Liga, and Ligue 1 as yet another of Europe's "Big Five" leagues to get underway, much to the delight of calcio fans worldwide who have been starved of club football for over a month.
Here's all you need to know ahead of matchday 16, which will see all ten of its fixtures played on January 4th in a very busy day for Serie A followers.
How the table looks ahead of matchday 16
Thanks to their stunning start that has many talking, Napoli currently sit on top of the table by a commanding margin. The Partenopei are still unbeaten in the league, but will face a tough test to kick off 2023 as they are set to travel to face Inter.
Meanwhile, Milan, who came into this season as reigning Scudetto champions for the first time in over a decade, have quite a lot of work to do to close the gap. The Rossoneri will face Salernitana in a game that they do appear to be favorites, but following a poor result in their final match of 2022, Stefano Pioli will not be taking things lightly.
Inter have some ground to make up if the Nerazzurri want to secure Champions League football, while Juventus will hope their strong form at the tail end of 2022 will continue into 2023. Finally, Roma ended the year on a bad note with just one win from their last five while Lazio endured mixed fortunes, winning three and losing two of their final five Serie A matches.
| Pos. | Equipo | PJ | G | E | P | GF | GC | DIF | P | Racha | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Internazionale | 34 | 28 | 5 | 1 | 81 | 18 | +63 | 89 | GGEGG | |
| 2 | Milan | 34 | 21 | 7 | 6 | 64 | 39 | +25 | 70 | EPEGG | |
| 3 | Juventus | 34 | 18 | 11 | 5 | 47 | 26 | +21 | 65 | EEEGP | |
| 4 | Bologna | 35 | 17 | 13 | 5 | 49 | 27 | +22 | 64 | EEGEE | |
| 5 | Roma | 34 | 17 | 8 | 9 | 61 | 41 | +20 | 59 | EGPGE | |
| 6 | Atalanta | 33 | 17 | 6 | 10 | 61 | 37 | +24 | 57 | GGEPG | |
| 7 | Lazio | 34 | 17 | 4 | 13 | 43 | 35 | +8 | 55 | GGGPG | |
| 8 | Fiorentina | 33 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 50 | 37 | +13 | 50 | GGEPP | |
| 9 | Napoli | 34 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 52 | 43 | +9 | 50 | EPEGP | |
| 10 | Torino | 35 | 11 | 14 | 10 | 31 | 31 | 0 | 47 | EPEEP | |
| 11 | Monza | 34 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 36 | 44 | -8 | 44 | EPEPP | |
| 12 | Genoa | 34 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 38 | 40 | -2 | 42 | GPEGE | |
| 13 | Lecce | 34 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 31 | 49 | -18 | 36 | EGGPE | |
| 14 | Cagliari | 34 | 7 | 11 | 16 | 36 | 59 | -23 | 32 | PEEGE | |
| 15 | Hellas Verona | 34 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 31 | 45 | -14 | 31 | PGEPE | |
| 16 | Frosinone | 34 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 43 | 63 | -20 | 31 | GEEEE | |
| 17 | Empoli | 34 | 8 | 7 | 19 | 26 | 50 | -24 | 31 | PGPGP | |
| 18 | Udinese | 34 | 4 | 17 | 13 | 32 | 51 | -19 | 29 | EPPPE | |
| 19 | Sassuolo | 34 | 6 | 8 | 20 | 40 | 70 | -30 | 26 | PPEEE | |
| 20 | Salernitana | 34 | 2 | 9 | 23 | 26 | 73 | -47 | 15 | PPPEP |
Who's in the running for the Capocannoniere prize?
Napoli's Victor Osimhen currently has nine goals, which sees him in the lead for the Capocannoniere prize, but he has several challengers, including fellow Nigerian Ademola Lookman, who has netted seven for Atalanta alongside Inter's Lautaro Martinez, who was part of the Argentina squad who won the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Who's in and who's out for matchday 16
Here's the personnel situation for several teams heading into matchday 16.
*All info as of 3 January 2023
Napoli: Gianluca Gaetano (Stomach Flu)
Milan: Mike Maignan (Calf Injury), Divock Origi (Hamstring Injury), Junior Messias (Muscle Fatigue), Ante Rebic (Tear in the abductor muscle), Zlatan Ibrahimović (Knee Surgery), Fodé Ballo-Touré (Fractured Collarbone), Alessandro Florenzi (Hamstring Injury), Rade Krunic (Muscle Fatigue)
Juventus: Leonardo Bonucci (Tear in the abductor muscle), Paul Pogba (Thigh Muscle Strain), Mattia De Sciglio (Hamstring Injury), Dusan Vlahovic (Groin Injury), Juan Cuadrado (Knee Problems), Kaio Jorge (Patella rupture)
Lazio: Luis Alberto (Knee Problems), Mario Gila (Foot Injury)
Inter: Dalbert (Cruciate Ligament Injury), Marcelo Brozovic (Calf Injury)
Roma: Georginio Wijnaldum (Knee Problems), Ebrima Darboe (Knee Surgery)
Key matches to catch on matchday 16
Salernitana vs Milan: The Rossoneri ended 2022 with a shock 3-0 loss to Dutch side PSV. While it was just a friendly, it certainly was not the way Pioli expected his side to prepare for their upcoming Serie A campaign. At the moment, Milan are a whopping eight behind Napoli, and could slip further behind should they not pick up all three points against Salernitana in what will be the first game of matchday 16.
Roma vs Bologna: Jose Mourinho will be hoping his side can turn things around in 2023 after winning just one of their last five Serie A matches. However, the Lupi will host a Bologna side who have been quite solid so far, and while the Rossoblu sit in 11th spot versus Roma's seventh, the visitors do come into this match having lost just one of their last five league ties.
Cremonese vs Juventus: La Vecchia Signora, who won all five of their final league games of 2022, have a great chance to make it a sixth on the spin when they host struggling Cremonese. The visitors, who are back in the top flight for the first time in nearly three decades, have had a torrid time and are looking set to make a swift return to Serie B if they can't turn around their poor form that has seen them yet to win a game so far this season.
Inter vs Napoli: Fans and neutrals alike will surely be looking forward to this fixture, which will pit league leaders Napoli against Inter at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. As noted before, the Partenopei are yet to lose a game so far this season, and as a result hold a commanding 11 point lead over their upcoming hosts.
Broadcast info for matchday 16
