Serie A 2014-15 mid-season report card: 5 things we have learnt so far
Although Juventus are on course to claim their fourth straight Serie A title, they have already shown a few chinks in their armour that others will look to exploit over the course of the season. While the fight for the title is between Juventus and Roma, the race for the final Champions League spot is heating up. Six teams are within three points off the coveted third place spot currently held by Napoli while at the bottom, barring a miracle, it looks as though the three clubs currently occupying the relegation places will go down this season.Four managers have already been sacked and the number is only expected to go up if the fortunes of those in the bottom half doesn't change. Here are the major talking points from the first half of the 2014/15 season in Serie A.
#1 Football has given the city of Genoa something to cheer about
Just three years after torrential flooding killed seven people, bureaucratic inertia and poorly planned buildings meant that one man was killed and €200 million worth of public property was damaged in the floods that occurred in Genoa in October 2014. With doom and gloom spreading like wildfire across the city, the people of Genoa needed something to cheer about and their football clubs have given them just that.
Both Sampdoria and Genoa are in the top six and are looking to end the season inside the European places. Manolo Gabbiadini's goals have lifted Sampdoria to fourth place, level on points with Napoli in third and Lazio in fifth. Genoa who are currently sixth, just one point behind the three teams tied on 27 points. They were in third place for most of the season before back-to-back defeats against Roma and Torino ahead of the Christmas break.
With both clubs flying high in Serie A, the people of Genoa at least have something now to take their minds off the terrible tragedy that befell them.