#16: Parma
Parma was among the best Serie B squads last season and with decent success on the top tier (19th, 12th, & 6th in the last 3 years) Parma looks to become a regular once again in Serie A football. The club has a solid defense (Serie B’s first ranked) and a reliable goal scorer in Alberto Paloschi. Next year it will be interesting to see how the first year team fares.
#15: Bologna
Marco Di Vaio single-handily kept Bologna’s hopes alive last year by scoring 24 goals, finishing the year with the second most in the league by one, and guiding the club to a 17th place finish. Di Vaio, who scored the most Serie A goals of any active Italian player last year, will need some help all around in order to keep Bologna afloat. We at the SATO believe that the vet will get that help and Bologna will improve a few spots this season.
#14: Catania
Catania is another one of those clubs that just can’t seem to turn the corner and become a top ten squad. The club has avoided relegation the last few years, but they did slip a few spaces back from their result two year ago. Catania has finished the last three years in 15th, 17th, and 13th place respectively. New manager Gianluca Atzori will look to keep the club improving by season’s end.
#13: Atalanta
Our 13th ranked club Atalanta has done surprisingly well the last few seasons. The club has finished 11th, 9th, and 8th over their first three years back in Serie A and hope to crack the top ten once again this year. We hear at SATO feel that the smaller market club is still a few positions away from such an achievement and will likely just barely miss the top ten clubs this year with a disappointing 13th ranked finish.
