Here are the standings of the top 6 teams in Serie A thus far:
1. Juventus- 22 pts
2. Roma- 22 pts
3. Lazio- 16 pts
4. Milan- 16 pts
5. Sampdoria- 16 pts
6. Udinese- 16 pts
As you can see, we are in for yet another tight race for European qualification. Juventus and Roma remain the favorites to battle it out for the Scudetto. However, the race for the 3rd and final Champions League spot as well as the two Europa League spots (4-5) could be a back and forth war until the end of the season.
Of course, Milan, under Inzaghi, are off to a better start compared to the last two seasons. We have seen quality play from the team's leading scorer, Keisuke Honda, and Ignazio Abate among other good performers. However, issues remain in the midfield for Milan as they still lack a creative presence. Stephan El Shaarawy still hasn't scored a goal yet this season but one positive is that he is fit and its only a matter of time until he gets into a scoring rhythm.
Additionally, Fernando Torres has only supplied one goal for Milan thus far, which arrived in his first start for Milan. Inzaghi has given Menez more time in the false 9 role so its still difficult to say what we can expect from Torres. Giacomo Bonaventura and Jeremy Menez have combined for 5 total goals which is a nice return. Still, unless Milan get production from El Shaarawy and Torres or perhaps Pazzini, staying in 4th place will be a challenge.
Despite being in 4th place, Milan have yet to get into a rhythm as a squad. Against some of the more easier opponents, they continue to earn just one point which could really hurt down the stretch. Sure, the point isn't bad but Milan have yet to play Roma, Inter, Sampdoria and Udinese. The positive to take from this all is that Inzaghi has yet to get the best of his squad. With the return of Montolivo and hopefully a more productive El Shaarawy, there is no doubt that this club could get back into a European tournament.
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