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Serie A clubs have struggled to make high-profile signings this summer given the kind of financial pressure they have been put under recently. It appears as if all roads lead out of Italy at the current point in time.
A recently published report brings out the perilous situation Serie A clubs are in right now. This is due to the pandemic which hit their financial proceeds from ticket sales. The losses among Serie A clubs amounted to €754 m last season with the overall revenue generated going down to €2.2 billion.
This has affected the chances of Serie A clubs making new signings. Even those who managed to earn star status on the back of their performances last season are seeking ways out of this sinking ship.
Serie A clubs banking on low-key signings
In a summer that has been dominated by Premier League teams spending millions on signings, Serie A clubs have put their weight behind low-key signings.
AC Milan are the side that have spent the most on a player so far, signing Fikayo Tomori permanently from Chelsea for a fee in the region of €29m. This is in complete contrast to the €115m Chelsea spent for Romelu Lukaku and €117m Manchester City spent on Jack Grealish.
However, money hardly ensures success in football. One can take the case of Eden Hazard for example. Real Madrid broke the bank to make him one of their high-profile signings but are yet to reap the benefits of that investment.
So there is no reason for Serie A fans to be too disheartened by their teams' inability to spend millions on signings.
In the list given below we are going to discuss five new signings to watch out for in Serie A starting next Saturday.
#5 Felipe Anderson (Lazio)
Felipe Anderson secured a move back to Lazio three years following his departure for the Premier League. Despite being one of West Ham's most promising signings in the summer of 2018, Anderson failed to live up to the billing as a whole.
The Hammers used him extensively in his first season in England. He featured in 36 of West Ham's 38 league games, scoring nine goals. He also helped set up four more for his team-mates.
However, following the departure of Manuel Pellegrini, the man who had initially brought him to England, his chances started to get limited. Injuries and loss of form further complicated his problems.
He spent most of last season on the bench at Porto, where he had been sent out on loan and complained about the lack of opportunities there.
However, a move back to Serie A might give Anderson a new lease of life. Despite the the low transfer fee involved in the deal, Anderson could turn out to be a game changer for Lazio in Serie A this season.
The Brazilian is very good at creating opportunities. He is extremely skilled as well as technical and possesses good vision when it comes to creating goal scoring opportunities.
He has the knack of developing a good understanding with the strikers and can deliver excellent through balls. Anderson's skills could even sharpen up a bit while working with Maurizio Sarri, making him one of the key signings for his former club Lazio this summer.
#4 Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina)
Amidst uncertainties prevailing over the future of Dusan Vlahovic, Fiorentina signed Nicolas Gonzalez from Stuttgart for a fee in the region of €23m.
He was one of two signings on whom the Serie A club decided to spend money this summer, with the other one being Brazilian defender Igor.
Gonzalez's record with the Bundesliga club last term isn't reflective of his true capabilities. The 23-year-old had to cope with multiple injury issues, limiting his league appearances to just 15 last season.
Even then he showed sparks of his brilliance, adding to the score sheet six times. Gonzalez had even drawn interest from teams such as Tottenham and Juventus before the Bundesliga's winter break.
What makes him an even more special signing for Fiorentina is his ease with different types of roles. Though Gonzalez has operated mainly as a striker of late, he is mainly billed as a left-winger and can also be used down the right-wing.
He possesses great positional skills and is good at finding space between the lines. As a winger, the 23-year-old averages almost eight dribbles per 90 minutes and always has pace to burn.
With all those injuries now behind him, Gonzalez could turn out to be one of the most crucial signings for Fiorentina in the upcoming season.
#3 Mike Maignan (AC Milan)
Mike Maignan was one of the signings Serie A outfit AC Milan were forced to make this summer following the departure of Gianluigi Donnarumma for Paris Saint-Germain. The Italian goalkeeper is one of the star players to have left Milan this summer, with the other being Hakan Calhanoglu.
As such, Maignan knows all about the weight of expectations on him in Serie A, though he is not one to backtrack. He is a product of PSG's youth academy, though he never got the chance to play for their first-team.
The shot-stopper was one of the main architects behind Lille's success in Ligue 1 last season, keeping 21 clean sheets in 38 games and contributing towards their impressive defensive record.
Nicknamed 'The Magic Eagle', Maignan was one of Lille's longest serving players until this summer when Serie A giants AC Milan made him one of their four new signings. Standing at six feet three inches, he will be among the tallest goalkeepers in Serie A and one of the most athletic ones as well.
Maignan has earned himself a reputation for being a penalty-saving specialist and AC Milan can expect big things from one of their most important signings of the summer.
#2 Rui Patricio (AS Roma)
When Serie A giants AS Roma appointed Jose Mourinho as their new manager they knew they would have to back the Portuguese manager with new signings.
Rui Patricio became one of their earliest signings of the summer. Roma spent €11m to bring him to Serie A from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In Patricio, the Serie A side will get a proven winner as the Portuguese has already won major titles at both club and international levels. Without any disrespect to Wolves, it wouldn't be wrong to say that Patricio is deserving of a better club. A club like Roma will therefore suit him well.
He won the European Championships with Portugal back in 2016 and UEFA Nations Cup in 2019. His stint with Sporting Lisbon also resulted in three Taca de Portugal titles.
Patricio is an excellent shot-stopper and is reliable between the sticks. Given that he is 33, the Portuguese can give Serie A giants Roma many wonderful years ahead.
Mourinho, as experienced a manager as he is, has given extra thought to his signings and Patricio can surely prove his decision right.
#1 Olivier Giroud (AC Milan)
The top position on the list of signings to watch out for has to go to veteran French striker Olivier Giroud.
Despite being 34, Giroud provides his team with excellent aerial threats and can be one of AC Milan's utility signings.
Statistics show that the Frenchman is among the three forwards with the highest number of headed goals, the other two being Leonardo Pavoletti and Guido Carrillo.
Of the 90 goals he scored in the Premier League, 32 came from headers at an average of 35 per cent. And that, while considering the fact that he was often considered a back-up striker at his previous clubs.
Giroud added to the scoresheet 11 times in 31 games for Chelsea last season, at a time when his future was still up in the air.
With an exit from Chelsea now being secured, Giroud will be able to play more freely and could become one of Serie A's biggest signings next season.
