Serie A Team Of The Week: Round 1

Not a single one of last season's top four managed a win on opening weekend. Milan were stunned by Bologna, Juve shared the spoils with Fiorentina, and Inter found themselves held by Sampdoria. Elsewhere Torino thrashed newcomers Lecce, Udinese sank Palermo, and Catania edged Genoa.

What's more, Atalanta scraped past Siena and Chievo enjoyed a fruitful return with a 2-1 win over Reggina, but it was down to Lazio to put in the best performance of the weekend as they utterly thrashed ten-man Cagliari 4-1.

This week's line-up appears in a 3-5-2:


Sereni
Zambrotta - Grygera - Legrottaglie
Valiani - Aquilani - Hamsik - Ronaldinho - Inler
Di Natale - Zarate


Goalkeeper

Matteo Sereni- 8.0, Torino 3-0 Lecce
The shot-stopper made a number of stunning saves against Lecce to register a clean sheet for his side. The 33-year-old, who once played for Ipswich Town, showed that he still has what it takes to cut the mustard at the highest levels.

Defenders

Gianluca Zambrotta- 7.5, Milan 1-2 Bologna
He took some time to get into the game, but he was outstanding when he did. Having started on the left before switching to the right when Marek Jankulovski came on, the former Barcelona star formed a great partnership with Ronaldinho on the flank. He never stopped running and was a constant threat down the wings.

Zdenek Grygera- 7.5, Juventus 1-1 Fiorentina
The Czech defender has discovered that he can be an assist man as well as brilliant stopper. He always seemed to find space behind Fiorentina’s back line undetected. Indeed, he muscled his way into the box to set up Pavel Nedved's opener.

Nicola Legrottaglie- 7.0, Juventus 1-1 Fiorentina
The former Siena man has taken full responsibility at the back in Giorgio Chiellini’s absence. Was a commanding presence and kept Alberto Gilardino quiet for most of the game. Broke up the play and kept things organised.

Midfielders

Francesco Valiani- 8.0, Milan 1-2 Bologna
The versatile midfielder ensured his Serie A debut was a special one. He was outstanding throughout the match and stunned San Siro with a goal of the season contender ten minutes from time, stealing the points for the Rossoblu. A perfect start.

Alberto Aquilani- 8.0, Roma 1-1 Napoli
The Italian international is Roma’s unsung hero. He never stopped running and was a constant threat all over the pitch: in attack - holding up play - and in defence. His work rate was second to none and his goal was well taken.

Marek Hamsik- 8.5, Roma 1-1 Napoli
The Slovakian started where he left off from last term. Easily the man of the match, he ran the show for the Partenopei and earned his side a well deserved point with a brilliant, acrobatic strike. No wonder the club kept him this summer.

Ronaldinho- 8.0, Milan 1-2 Bologna
The Brazilian was back to his old tricks as he marked his debut in Serie A with some magical and dazzling play. His assist for Massimo Ambrosini was top-class and 'Dinho never stopped wowing the crowd. Fitter, sharper and more determined - it can only get better for him and the Rossoneri.

Gokhan Inler- 7.5, Udinese 3-1 Palermo
The Swiss international proved just why Udinese spent all summer trying to hold onto him. Every dangerous ball came via his feet as he created chance after chance for his side. He capped off a great performance with an unstoppable headed goal to ensure his side took all three points.

Strikers

Antonio Di Natale- 9.0, Udinese 3-1 Palermo
The hit-man fired his side to victory with a stunning brace. The two goals had Di Natale written all over them: a stunning run and finish and a fine lob over Marco Amelia. His display helped the Bianconeri get off to a flyer. Well done Toto!

Mauro Zarate- 8.0, Cagliari 1-4 Lazio
The Argentine grabbed a double - a well taken penalty and a clever lob - but that’s not all he contributed. He was a constant threat around the box and he linked up superbly with Goran Pandev. Showed incredible pace and hunger and Lazio will expect more of the same next week.


Sereni
Zambrotta - Grygera - Legrottaglie
Valiani - Aquilani - Hamsik - Ronaldinho - Inler
Di Natale - Zarate


Honourable Mentions

Among the better performers were Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Pietro Accardi (Sampdoria), Pavel Nedved (Juventus), Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina) ,Alessandro Rosina (Torino), and Angelo Palombo (Sampdoria).

Also worthy of consideration were Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Gennaro Delvecchio (Sampdoria), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Inter) , Marco Di Vaio (Bologna), and Ezequiel Lavezzi (Napoli).