Inter Milan won their 18th Scudetto in the familiar setting of Siena on Sunday afternoon, although it could have been so very different. Roma comfortably disposed of Chievo through excellent Vucinic and De Rossi goals, while at the same time Inter struggling to break the deadlock against Siena with Curci on fine form and Balotelli hitting the woodwork. But the ever reliable Diego Milito capitalised on a surging run from evergreen Javier Zanetti to give Inter the advantage, and from that point there was never any way back for Siena. Roma, as they did two years ago, will have to settle for second but have the prospect of Champions League football, and the Italian Super Cup final in China, to soften the blow.
Inter however can be considered deserving champions. They have stuttered somewhat in over the last few months after they had at one point amassed a huge lead, but the growing quality again in Serie A put Inter under considerable pressure in the closing months. A 3-1 defeat in Catania, held in both Naples and Palermo, and beaten of course in Rome against Roma. However, they have fought on three fronts for the whole season and are 90 minutes away from an unprecedented treble and I feel few can deny them the plaudits for that. The selling of Zlatan Ibrahimovic was a shame, if only for the genius he provided that side, but the guile and team ethic that has replaced that has made them an irresistible unit on the continent especially. Inter, Campioni di Italia and rightly so based on this season. Now its up to the rest to demonstrate their value and surpass Inter next season.
Elsewhere Sampdoria secured Champions League football next season with a 1-0 win over Napoli, but even that was not enough to lure Luigi Del Neri to stay on the bench next season and his arrival at Juve is all but confirmed for next season. There he will have to settle for the Europa League and a reconstruction of the less than grand old lady based on this season, again highlighted after a 3-0 mauling in Milan on Saturday night. They will be joined by Napoli and Palermo who beat Atalanta 2-1 on the final day to finish a credible 5th in the table.
Elsewhere, Lazio climbed the table to finish 12th this season with a fine 3-1 victory of ten man Udinese. Sergio Floccari was on the mark, as usual, with an outstanding finish to allow the Aquile to finish on a high after a dismal campaign. Catania were also victorious in a 1-0 victory over Genoa with Maxi Lopez hitting his 11th goal of the season since joining the club in January. Fiorentina's campaign ended in Bari with a 2-0 defeat, but for them it's been a case of almost but not quite as many would argue that they and not Bayern should have been in the quarter finals of the Champions League. Still, one side that can be righlty pleased with their season is Parma who rounded off with a crushing 4-1 win over Livorno to confirm their place in the top ten along with Bari, both fresh up from Serie B last season. Finally, Cagliari and Bologna played out a 1-1 draw and that was all that was written for this season. Its been one of ups and downs for every side, high tension and drama to the last. Even going into this last round pivotal pieces of the Championship had not been decided, and this is testament to the quality and entertainment that this division provides.
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