Serie B: Pescara off to a great start while Nocerina hold on in first Serie B home game for 32 years

Zdenek Zeman steared Pescara to a second consecutive win to take the Abruzzo based side top of the Serie B table. Pescara fans have a right to be excited right now, not least because Juve man Ciro Immobile fired twice tonight in a 3-2 win over Serie B heavyweights Empoli. With Sampdoria stalling again in Livorno in a 0-0 game, Pescara have steamed away at the top with Sassuolo on six points. It is early day but with Zeman in charge Pescara will certainly be entertaining to watch this season. 

Joining them in the win column tonight was Bari winning 1-0 away at Modena while Ascoli were also victorious, chipping away at their six point penalty which they were given at the beginning of the season. Not every team in Serie B played tonight but Nocerina did and they entertained Brescia in a packed Stadio San Francesco D'Assisi in their first Serie B game for 32 years, having been promoted from the Lega Pro last year. This is something of a fairytale for this club and they did not disappoint, taking the lead after Castaldo headed in a deflected shot after 40 minutes. The lead did not last long however as Ignacio fired home a superb low strike from outside the area on the stroke of half time. It finished 1-1 after an entertaining second half with Brescia twice hitting the woodwork. Tomorrow Torino and Hellas Verona are both in action and will be looking to pick up three points against Cittadella and Juve Stabia respectively.

Inter kick start their mercato, at last

It's taken them some time but much like city rivals Milan last Summer Inter have finally taken substantial action as far as their mercato goes. Diego Forlan and Andrea Poli are set to come in and this may kick start a frantic final few days of the mercato for the Nerazzurri. 

With Samuel Eto'o moving to pastures new Diego Forlan is set to take his place. Although older than the Cameroon Lion Forlan represents a quality addition to an already quality forward line with Diego Milito back from injury, Giampaolo Pazzini already in good form after his pre-season exploits and Luc Castingos arriving from Feyenoord ready to learn his trade alongside some of the top forwards in the world. 

The loss of Eto'o will still hurt for the Inter Tifosi and perhaps more players are set to arrive given that Forlan is rumoured to cost Inter 'only' five million and that Andrea Poli, the talented young midfielder who broke through at Sampdoria over the last two years, is set to arrive on loan with an option to buy. 

Inter have though been heavy spenders over the last decade and beyond and perhaps with Inter having achieved everything now under Moratti's watch the incentive to splash million after million has dried up somewhat and now is the time to reign this in. Time will tell whether this is the case for Inter and the opportunity to sell a player of 30 years of age for almost 30 million euros is not an offer to be sneezed at. Alternatively, perhaps Moratti sees this as the time to freshen up a squad that slumped last year after that treble winning season with fresh faces, eagar to make a run at the Scudetto and Champions League titles once more. 

Perhaps whether anyone else of significance arrives or not will indicate whether Inter are looking to halt the big spending of recent years or instead freshen up the squad much like they did last time in the wake of Ibrahimovic being sold. Either way, Interista's should be pleased tonight at least that some intent has at last been shown by their club this Summer.

Pandev off to Naples

Napoli have captured Goran Pandev on a season long loan as the Partenopei add another quality player to their lineup for the long season that they have ahead of them. Of course as is well known by now this season will not start this weekend due to strike action but Napoli will need the new additions to their squad to hit top gear early considering the challenge that awaits them in repeating last seasons third place heroics and getting out of the group of death that they have fallen into in the Champions League. 

Pandev's experience will help with this, after all he eliminated Bayern Munich from the Champions League last season with a superb goal at the Allianz Arena to send Inter through to the quarter finals, and he will provide welcome relief and quality to a forward line that already boasts Cavani and Lavezzi. With Inler and Dzemali arriving as well and Gargano still on board the strength in depth Napoli have has increased, and it needed to if they are to be competitive on all fronts. However, tonight's news should please Napoli fans and Pandev as well. At Inter he was never going to lead their front line but in Naples he will get on the pitch far more often that he would have done at the San Siro. Looks like a win win situation for all concerned then, even the Interista's who should now see Diego Forlan arrive to add weight to their attack, and maybe Palacio as well.

Inter rebuilding as Eto'o on the verge of Russian move

The more time that passes in the final days of the mercato the more certain it looks that Samuel Eto'o is on the verge of completing a multi million pound move to Russia. All in all this will be disappointing news for Nerazzuri followers as Samu was their best player last season, and by some distance. Having held up the Inter front line while Diego Milito spent most of the season injured and while Wesley Sneijder failed to live up to the high standards so often displayed in his first season Eto'o will be sorely missed. And, despite Zanetti and Cambiasso having come out and stated that Inter are still strong, which they of course are, one wonders whether another quiet mercato at San Siro will cost them again this season.

Let's look at the situation rationally however. Eto'o has perhaps two to three seasons left in him at the top and his sale will earn Inter a reported 100 million in savings on wages and the transfer fee itself. This, in theory at least, should allow Inter to invest some of that in replacing the great man and keeping Wesley Sneijder as well. It all sounds a beat defeatist however while other clubs round Europe splash money like their is no tomorrow. This is however something Inter have been doing for years and lets not forget that this was exactly what they did in January when signing Giampaolo Pazzini and Yugo Nagatomo. Indeed talented signings in the shape of Argentine Alvarez, who has impressed in pre-season, and highly rated Dutch youngster Luc Castaignos have arrived. The latter is regarded as a huge talent, being only 18 and having scored 15 goals in just 30 games for Feyenoord in the Dutch Eredivise last season. 

The question is whether players of this immature ilk can fill the shoes of the like of Eto'o for Inter? The obvious answer is no, not right away and while they present a bright future for the Benemata they will be reliant on a fully fit Milito and Pazzini front line to replace the goals that the Cameroon Lion gave them last year. Talk of Diego Forlan is on the horizon and while knocking on in years, in sporting terms at least, he could be the sort of player to fill the void for a year or two until the young talent at Inter are ready to come to the fore.

Calcio Mercato: Who is Mr X?

Since the beginning of the mercato Milan have been keen to add a midfielder. It's no secret, since Andrea Pirlo has moved on Allegri has been on the look out for someone with a touch of class to fill the void and there is no question that this is needed. Whilst Boateng offers ingenuity and tenacity the rest of the midfield looks like something you would find out of a rough nightclub. That is no disrespect because they are all enforcers. Van Bommel, Gattuso and Ambrosini are all keen to break up play but cannot be relied upon to open up space and create opportunites for the forwards. Enter, therefore, Mr X. But who is he, or does he even exists. Is it all a mirage from Galliani and co or much like last year will they surprise all with a stunning mercato move in it's dying embers?

All of these are just questions but Bastian Schweinsteiger has today been linked with Milan. He is exactly the type of midfield player Milan need. Not only is he highly talented but he has the experience at club and international level to settle in straight away and pull the strings for the Diavolo. How true this rumour is is anyones guess. An alternative is Riccardo Montolivo. The viola player is one whose reputation is growing in stature and his role in Fiorentina's champions league run two seasons ago is to his advantage. Indeed, he is beginning to make the Italy shirt his own as well with a great performance their 2-1 win against Spain last week.

The final candidate would seem to be Alberto Aquiliani who has enjoyed a decent pre season and also made an impact against Spain last week, but one would question whether Allegri can build a midfield around a 

player who is frequently injury prone. 

With not many weeks left until the window shuts it won't be long until the identity of Mr X is revealed. The real question is whether Milan really know who he is right now. One would hope so if they are aiming to have a genuine crack at the Champions League this season. 

Supercoppa Italia: AC Milan 2-1 Inter

AC Milan started their season in winning form in China with a sweet victory over rivals Inter in the Italian super cup, but for large periods of the game it looked like AC had no answer to their city rivals. Inter were much the better side in the first half as Wesley Sneijder gave them the lead through an excellent free kick after Gennaro Gattuso brought Obi down on the edge of the area. Indeed, Obi and new signing Riccardo Alvarez looked excellent down the left hand side as their tormented Ignazio Abate for much of the first half. 

It look hard to see anyway back into this match for Milan at half time. Their midfield looked stagnant as Seedorf, Gattuso and Van Bomel struggled to feed Boateng and Ibrahimovic anything of creative substance. But, half time is where managers earn some of their money and Milan looked a different side after the break. Seedorf especially was superb as he and Robinho were involved in the build up for Ibrahimovic's headed equaliser. Inter were rattled and it showed when Pato was introduced. Abate's long ball fell to the young Brazilian and he forced a great save out of Julio Cesar, but he could not deny Boateng who converted the rebound.

This proved enough for Milan in a packed Birds Nest Stadium in China as they dealt the first blow to their most serious Scudetto challengers this season. However, last time Inter lost in the supercoppa they went on to do the treble so perhaps defeat here will be a good omen for their season.

Inter on the verge of signing Bastos

Inter Milan look on the verge of signing Lyon's left sided midfielder Michel Bastos. The Brazilian talent has long been linked with a move to Serie A and principally with Juventus but Inter look set to steal the show in an exchange that will see McDonald Mariga go the other way. 

Given that Inter look set to adopt a 3-4-3 formation next season Bastos is a player that will go down well in Inter quarters. His explosive pace and finishing ability was key in Lyon's run to the Champions League semi finals two years ago. It's been a slow market for Inter so far but this could kick start proceedings especially given the rumours that Maicon is up for sale to help fund the quest for Carlos Tevez.

In other news Samir Handanovic tied himself to Udinese in a contract until 2016.