The race for the Champions League spots in Serie A has been transformed after Juventus had their 15-point reduction in the division reversed on Thursday.
The restoration of Juve’s points sees them jump from seventh to third in the standings with four teams dropping a place. The biggest losers, as the table stands, are defending champions Milan – who drop to fifth and outside of the Champions League places.
The Rossoneri are through to the Champions League semi-finals having edged past Napoli – Serie A’s runaway league leaders – in the last eight, setting up a mouth-watering two-legged clash against city rivals Inter.
Simone Inzaghi’s team are also big losers from Juve having their points restored as they drop down to sixth in the standings, having lost 11 of their 30 Serie A matches this campaign. The Nerazzurri have established themselves somewhat as cup specialists, having won the Italian Super Cup and they are also in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia.
Atalanta are now a whopping seven points off a top-four spot and now trail Juve by 10 points having had a five-point cushion. The Bergamo-based club are very much the minnows in the European race but may feel a missed opportunity with the continual stumbles of their top four rivals this campaign.
Juve having their points restored is also bad news for Jose Mourinho's Roma, who drop one place to fourth. While they remain in the Champions League qualification spots having won three league matches on the bounce, they are just three points clear of Milan and five of Inter.
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Napoli, on 75 points, will win their first league title in 30 years as they hold a 14-point advantage over second-placed Lazio and 16 of Juve, despite the latest development. Lazio, coached by Maurizio Sarri, remain in a strong position to qualify for the Champions League as they are eight points ahead of fifth-placed Milan.
Lazio will be confident of seeing out a top-four finish but there remains a scramble for the remaining spots with every side down to Atalanta in seventh still harbouring hopes of a late surge in form. The upcoming matchday sees Juve host Napoli while Roma travel to Atalanta.
There are regular clashes between the top four hopefuls in each matchday, with Roma’s tricky run continuing as they host Milan in a potential crunch match the following week, while Inter will believe they must beat Lazio at home if they are to keep their hopes alive.
Matchday 34 pairs six of the rivals against each other as Atalanta host Juventus, Lazio travel to Milan and Roma are at home to Inter. At that point, the picture for Champions League qualification will become much clearer.
Other eye-catching matches sees Napoli host Inter on matchday 36 while the penultimate matchday sees Milan travel to Juventus and Inter take on Atalanta. The final day of the season also sees tricky away fixtures for Inter and Juventus, who are scheduled to travel to Torino and Udinese respectively.
Serie A is arguably the most competitive and intriguing of Europe’s major leagues this campaign, despite Napoli running away with the title. Despite Juve now moving up to third they are far from assured of a Champions League finish, with capitals rivals Lazio and Roma, Champions League semi-finalists Milan and Inter among those with eyes on top four positions.
