Serie A Matchday 1 Talking Points: Conte's Napoli nightmare, Inter and AC Milan's defensive woes
After a long summer break, top flight action finally returned to Italy as the 2024/25 Serie A campaign kicked off, and there were plenty of talking points in Matchday 1.
The return of a familiar face in Antonio Conte on the Napoli bench promised fireworks but he endured a disastrous debut, whilst champions Inter and rivals AC Milan were both held to 2-2 draws amidst late drama in their respective fixtures.
AS Roma, meanwhile, took on Cagliari but all the focus was on Paulo Dybala amidst what could be his final appearance for the Giallorossi.
Champions Inter caught out in defence
Just months on from strolling to the scudetto, Inter began their attempts to retain the Serie A title with a visit to Genoa but were left reeling as a 95th-minute Junior Messias goal saw the Grifone snatch a 2-2 draw.
Having looked so solid at the back last season, Inter were surprisingly porous in defence and Yann Bisseck's poor challenge late on saw Genoa earn the penalty that Messias scored from, via a rebound.
Meanwhile, Francesco Acerbi, at 36, looked off the pace and questions must be asked of his viability over the coming campaign.
Even the ever-reliable Alessandro Bastoni was unconvincing and coach Simone Inzaghi will be hoping that his woes are just down to opening night nerves and not a sign of a defensive wall that is starting to crumble.
Ominous signs at Napoli for Conte already
After a dreadful defence of their title last season, Napoli went all out to lure Antonio Conte back to Serie A. The perennial scudetto winner with Juventus and Inter has cut a frustrated figure all summer however, and a dreadful 3-0 defeat to Hellas Verona will have done little to lighten his mood.
The Partenopei looked off the pace at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi, whilst the loss of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to a first half injury added to their woes.
With Conte demanding signings that have thus far failed to materialise, the ex-Chelsea boss' future in Naples has already been cast into doubt and a woeful start to the campaign could see him walk before his stint has truly begun.
AC Milan spare Fonseca's debut blushes but defensive concerns remain
After parting ways with Stefano Pioli in the summer, AC Milan did little to assuage supporters when turning to Paulo Fonseca as coach and the Portuguese needed a dramatic fightback from his team to avoid a home defeat to Torino.
Trailing 2-0 and looking out of sorts in defence, the Rossoneri rescued a point as Noah Okafor's 95th minute equaliser followed a debut Alvaro Morata effort in the 89th minute.
Fonseca's starting line-up failed to make any impact of note though the former Roma coach was able to turn things around with some smart substitutions, with both goalscorers coming off the bench.
However, Torino took full advantage of some dreadful defending, particularly when Duvan Zapata was left in acres of space by Theo Hernandez and Malick Thiaw to net the Granata's second.
The Diavolo are certainly not short of options in attack, but sub-par defending proved their downfall last season and the early signs suggest it could be their undoing again this year.
AS Roma lack spark without Dybala
Roma began their Serie A campaign with a trip to Sardinia to face Cagliari, but the build up was dominated by Paulo Dybala's future, as the Argentina international seemingly closes in on a move to Saudi Arabian club Al Qadsiah.
The former Juventus man was left on the bench, officially for tactical and technical reasons, and Daniele De Rossi only turned to him in the 70th minute as Roma fought to break the deadlock.
Dybala almost made the perfect impact with a wonderful cross for debutant Artem Dovbyk to head against the crossbar, but ultimately Roma couldn't find a way through and had to settle for a 0-0 draw.
Without their star man on the pitch, the Lupi looked short of creativity and Dovbyk saw little service, and it is easy to see why there is such frustration amongst supporters at the impending departure of their main playmaker.