Victor Osimhen plays on another level when he’s fired up, Atalanta have the BEST midfielder in Italy – and these could be the last days of Rome for Jose Mourinho… TEN THINGS WE LEARNED from Serie A this week

• Ruben Loftus-Cheek netted his first goal for AC Milan in a 3-1 win over Cagliari 
• Meanwhile, out-of-form defender Gleison Bremer has been a flop for Juventus
• Mail Sport’s new WhatsApp Channel: Get the breaking news and exclusives here

For those involved in European competitions, the matches are starting to come thick and fast in Serie A. And perhaps for some, it’s starting to take its toll.

Napoli were the only Italian outfit to win in the Champions League last week, as AC Milan, Inter and Lazio all looked rather weary, scoring just two goals between them.

Despite picking up their first European win of the season, the defending champions then played out a drab 0-0 stalemate with Bologna at the weekend, knowing another round of Serie A fixtures was only just over the horizon.

So, as Serie A met once again for a round of midweek fixtures, there were several top sides heading in with a point to prove.

Here’s what we learned from round six of the 2023-24 Serie A campaign. 

Mail Sport looks at ten things we learned as Serie A returned for a round of midweek fixtures

Loftus-Cheek is a sniper

The former Chelsea star showed precision and power to fire home AC Milan’s third and final goal against Cagliari and was a significant factor in their 3-1 victory.

He may not have been lauded for his finishing at Stamford Bridge, but Ruben Loftus-Cheek showed on Wednesday that he can be a sniper in front of goal. The midfielder has the ability to put his opposition goalkeeper in trouble because of the power he generates with his right foot.

As the Englishman let rip, Boris Radunovic could only graze the ball, surrendering to the unstoppable shot. From the strike alone, few would have believed it was his first goal for the club.

Loftus-Cheek is proving to Milan fans that he can replace the qualities left behind by  Sandro Tonali in the middle of the park, running and stretching the game with great speed and power.

Now climbing to second, and level on points with rival Inter at the summit, it is clear AC Milan need only a little refinement to put together a formidable run. 

Having high quality players is crucial, and Loftus-Cheek could be one of the most pleasant surprises of this season. If he continues to look after his body, the midfielder could become a key player for both Milan and the English national team.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored his first goal for Milan as his side beat Cagliari 3-1 on Wednesday

Angry Osimhen is reborn

Victor Osimhen found the net once again during Napoli’s confident 4-1 win over Udinese on Wednesday night. More importantly, it helped him find his smile again after the TikTok video scandal.

Neapolitan fans made it clear at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium that they were in full support of Osimhen in these days of chaos. In contrast, they approached Rudi Garcia with coldness and apathy as he occupied the touchline. 

The goal may have brushed away the ill-conceived idea that Osimhen has lost his way in Naples, but it’s not erased the issues surrounding Garcia. 

While Garcia was defined as ‘clumsy’ earlier this week, Osimhen proves to be an top player, even when he’s angry. The Nigerian, upon scoring the second against Udinese, ran over to hug Jesper Lindstrom and met Garcia’s gaze. 

He voluntarily refused to take the penalty despite Garcia asking the team to let him do so, and he instead gave Piotr Zielinski the opportunity to score. 

The next few days will be decisive in understanding the player’s future in Naples.

Victor Osimhen’s feelings towards Napoli boss Rudi Garcia seem only to be firing him up more

The pendulum’s swinging for Sommer 

The feeling in Italy is that Yann Sommer is a goalkeeper of great quality but has lost a bit of concentration after the compliments he’s received over the last few weeks. 

For long stretches of the match against Sassuolo, which Inter lost 2-1, Sommer was almost like a rubber wall continually bouncing efforts away from goal. However, unfortunately for him, he made a very serious mistake which wiped out the credits he’d chalked up previously.

The Swiss goalkeeper may not be the best goalkeeper in the world, but he is certainly a very reliable goalkeeper who on at least four occasions saved Inter from Sassuolo’s venom.

His poor mistake not only betrayed him but also betrayed Inter, who have now lost their first match of the season and could be beginning to lose confidence in the Swiss No 1.

Yann Sommer made a catalogue of saves against Sassuolo but also made a significant mistake

Koopmeiners deserves a big move

At the moment, Teun Koopmeiners is the best midfielder in Serie A. The goal he scored against Verona handed Atalanta their first away win of the season, relaunching the team’s European ambitions. 

By far Atalanta’s best player, the Dutch midfielder is present in every area of ​​the midfield and seems to be in optimal physical condition, despite the fact that Serie A only started a few weeks ago. 

According to Opta data after the goal scored against Verona, Koopmeiners has scored the most goals in Serie A among midfielders since January 2023. 

The Dutchman scored has now bagged eight goals, overtaking Adrien Rabiot and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who has now moved to Saudi Arabia. 

While both Charles De Ketelaere and Ederson wasted several opportunities to score, Koopmeiners proved to be an exceptional bonus in attack against Verona, just when the likes of Ademola Lookman and Mario Pasalic were starting to show a lack of composure in the penalty area. 

Atalanta and Netherlands star Teun Koopmeiners is currently the best midfielder in Serie A

For how he manages the midfield, dictates play and commands the game, Koopmeiners deserves a chance at a top club and the feeling is that this could be his last season at Atalanta.

Bremer’s been a flop for Juve

Gleison Bremer appears to be on a downward trajectory in his career. 

Ever since his transfer from Torino to Juventus, he has failed to maintain the required high standards that are expected of him, and the last match against Lecce showed all of his tactical limitations. 

The Brazilian star seems incapable of replacing Leandro Bonucci in the heart of the defence: he is clumsy and misses interceptions too regularly. 

More alarmingly, Bremer didn’t win a single physical duel with Lecce striker Nikola Kristovic. It led to him committing an endless series of stupid fouls that risked jeopardising the final result – a narrow 1-0 win to Juventus.

Gleison Bremer’s been a flop for Juventus and appears to be on a downward spiral in his career

In possession, Bremer seems afraid when the ball is passed between his feet, and it’s so evident that his manager Massimiliano Allegri frequently shouts ‘Calm down!’ in an effort to stop him fidgeting.

If the best defender against Lecce was Daniele Rugani, it shows Juventus’ defence has a serious problem. Bremer must be a charismatic leader, especially after Bonucci’s departure, but so far he has looked far off the mark.

Mourinho’s empire is crumbling

Roma collapsed under the blows of Genoa on Thursday and showed themselves to be a disjointed, disorderly and spineless group during the 4-1 defeat. 

Simply, new signings don’t work well when the team is suffering. Roma are a technically strong outfit but are made up of several players without charisma. 

During the ebbs and flows of their respective careers, Romelu Lukaku and Paulo Dybala have never been true leaders – and their inability to manage the delicate moments of each match has been a tough challenge for Jose Mourinho.

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Roma collapsed against Genoa and this could well spell the end for Jose Mourinho’s reign

Mourinho’s empire has collapsed and this is the worst start to a season in the club’s history: three defeats in six games. And, as we have so often seen before when things turn sour, he almost approached his post-match duties with a dismissive and reluctant lack of interest or care.

After the heavy defeat, the Portuguese boss said: ‘I apologise to the studio, I don’t want to talk much. At the end of the match I greeted the players. I don’t want to analyse the match. ‘We started badly, the goal we conceded was bad, like in Verona.’ 

His career on the Giallorossi bench seems to be nearing an end, and the club will probably start thinking about sacking him in case of defeat in the next Serie A match.

Kvaratskhelia’s back on target 

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia returned to the scoresheet with his first since March 2023. A six-month long wait: over 180 days of anger, annoyance and disappointment, which finally ended in Napoli’s 4-1 triumph over Udinese. 

Napoli star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia returned to the scoresheet with his first goal since March

He too, like Osimhen, returned to score in a decisive match for the fate of Napoli, who seriously risked being crushed by controversy after the shocking video which was published and then removed on the club’s TikTok account. 

From March 19, 2023 against Torino to September 27, 2023 against Udinese, many things have changed in Naples for Kvaratskhelia.

Osimhen makes different movements compared to before, Stanislav Lobotka is no longer the first player to offer a passing option, and Zambo Franck Anguissa runs far less than he did during the days of Luciano Spalletti.

Luvumbo is the ace in Cagliari’s deck 

Cagliari’s only hopes of survival revolve around the talent of Zito Luvumbo. The African striker is a lightning bolt and struck fear into the entire AC Milan defence, despite his side’s all-round performance being rather mediocre. 

Without the presence of Luvumbo, the Sardinian team probably wouldn’t have a prayer of remaining in Serie A. 

At the moment, there are too many players who are starting the season below expectations, such as Radunovic, Nahitan Nandez and Eldor Shomurodov to name a few.  

Cagliari’s only hopes of survival could well revolve around the talent of Zito Luvumbo (centre)

Luvumbo has scored extraordinary goals so far in Serie A, has shown he can run for 90 minutes consistently and even forced Milan into sacrifice two players to contain his speed in defence.

Cagliari are lucky to have him, and don’t be surprised if he’s the next big transfer to exit Claudio Ranieri’s doors.

Salernitana are in a Serie A horror film 

What’s happening in Salernitana? With three defeats, three draws and zero wins, the club’s current points tally seems destined for relegation to Serie B if they fail to turn the tide.

Paulo Sousa needs a jolt to awaken the team from a nightmare summer in which certain transfer choices went sensationally wrong. Salernitana is grappling with an identity crisis that will seemingly to condemn the team to a mediocre finish in Serie A this season.

Paulo Sousa (above) and Salernitana have suffered three defeats and three draws from their opening six matches of the Serie A campaign, casting doubt over the manager’s future

The defeat against Empoli was a hard pill for Sousa’s team to swallow, and it appears there are several chemistry problems within the locker room. 

President Iervolino could be tempted to spin the revolving door of managers once again in a bid to find the right coach to save Salernitana. And thus, Sousa could well be fired very soon. 

Adli turns from ghost to master 

After 346 days since his first start for the club, AC Milan’s forgotten man Yacine Adli returned to play a starring role in their win over Cagliari.

Last season, he only played six matches, one from the start and five from the bench.

But the midfielder, playmaking from deep, provided an excellent impact against Cagliari and could well win more opportunities in the near future under Stefano Pioli.

Almost a year – 346 days – since his first ever start for AC Milan, forgotten man Yacine Adli (centre) returned to play a pivotal role at the base of midfield against Cagliari on Wednesday

He may only be 23 years old, but Adli demonstrates a maturity far higher than that of his peers. 

As Gazzetta dello Sport recalled last year, after a season spent in exile, he organised a dinner at his house with the whole team, also inviting Pioli. 

The Frenchman was born as an attacking midfielder and in Bordeaux played as a winger, but in order to stay in AC Milan he’s chosen to learn a very different role. One that requires a defensive brain.

If he continues to impress alongside Loftus-Cheek and Tijjani Reijnders, the midfielder could be in for a fruitful campaign.

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