It all came down to Super Sunday!
A straight fight between Milan’s finest.
Could Inter retain the Serie A title against the odds and clinch a league and cup double, something which seemed highly unlikely following key departures last summer, or would AC Milan dream and win the Scudetto for the first time in over a decade.
Would it be destiny or dynasty in Milan?
The Rossoneri knew a point at the Mapei Stadium would be enough as they had a superior head-to-head record with arch-rivals Inter and a two-point lead going into the final round.
In the end, though, they won at a canter after a purple patch midway through the first half.
It was a dominant performance away to Sassuolo, with a hat-trick of Rafael Leao assists for Olivier Giroud’s brace and Franck Kessie to ensure Milan had their first Serie A title since 2011.
There was even time for the best 40 year-old in the business, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, to make a cameo appearance off the bench (he had the ball in the net from what would’ve been a fourth Leao assist, but this time the Portuguese winger was offside).
So, a first Milan title for 11 years, a first ever piece of silverware for manager Stefano Pioli and a triumph very much against the SBOTOP Serie A betting odds at the beginning of the season.
Of course, city rivals Inter deserve many plaudits after a season in which they also delivered Serie A highlights.
Last August, the club said goodbye to manager Antonio Conte and two of its star players, Gianluigi Donnarumma and striker Romelu Lukaku – the latter’s pending departure causing their fans stage a protest against the club owner after the Belgian netted 24 goals en route to a first title success in 11 years.
In came Simone Inzaghi and he did his new employers proud, guiding them to the Coppa Italia and taking the race to the last day.
Ultimately, an Ivan Perisic goal – perhaps on his final appearance for the club – and a Joaquin Correa double saw off Sampdoria but it wasn’t enough.
“Congratulations to AC Milan. It’s been a brilliant contest this year. See you next season,” read the club’s tweet.
It was a sporting way to end a 2021/22 sporting rivalry and, while few would suggest the standard of Serie A is as high as it was during Juventus’ recent spell of dominance, it made for a more enthralling season for the neutral.
With Napoli, Juventus and Lazio all safe in the top five, attention was also on the race for sixth and seventh.
It has been an unusual season for Roma.
Not once did they look capable of challenging for major honours domestically or in Europe, and there were some embarrassments along the way – not least a 6-1 Europa League reverse at minnows Bodo/Glimt.
However, Jose Mourinho’s first season at the club could yet end on a positive vibe.
They concluded their Serie A season with a 3-0 victory away to Torino on Friday night, earned with a Tammy Abraham brace and Lorenzo Pellegrini penalty, building confidence ahead of the Conference League Final.
Abraham bagged a brace, with Pellegrini converting a penalty late on for a foul on Nicolò Zaniolo.
In all competition, the former Chelsea striker has found the net 26 times in 51 appearances. Is this the season that saw him improve the most under the guidance of Mourinho?
All that meant Atalanta and Fiorentina had to fight it out for one Conference League play-off place.
After playing in the Champions League this campaign, the Conference would be a fall from grace for Atalanta but better than no European football altogether?
While they had to better Fiorentina’s result, the task facing Gian Piero Gasperini’s men was, in theory, more straightforward.
Instead, they suffered a frustrating afternoon in Bergamo, wasting numerous chances and eventually lost at home to Empoli, despite hitting the woodwork twice.
The visitors took the lead with their first genuine attempt as Leo Stulac swept the ball time into the near top corner from the edge of the area.
And that was that as Atalanta rounded off a disappointing campaign by their recent standards, even though they continue to punch well above their weight.
There were emotional scenes in the final minutes when Josip Ilicic made his comeback four months after he was signed off to deal with mental health concerns.
As it turned out, even had Atalanta won, Fiorentina would have pipped them on their superior head-to-head record after the Viola saw off Juventus 2-0 to seal European football for the first time in five years – Alfred Duncan and Nico Gonzalez on target with goals in stoppage time at the end of each half.
And so to Sunday night and the final matter of contention.
Who would survive – Salernitana, back in the top flight after an absence of 23 years, or Cagliari, seeking a seventh successive term?
Salernitana had a two-point advantage over Cagliari going into the final matches. Yet with their head-to-head record identical after a pair of 1-1 draws, and the next dividing factor being goal difference with Cagliari well ahead, if they were to finish level on points, the Sardinians would stay up.
That meant Salernitana had to beat Udinese to be sure of safety, something that was out of the question by half-time as the hosts shipped three first half goals, eventually slumping to a 4-0 defeat.
Yet still Cagliari needed a win at rock bottom Venezia and with 10 minutes remaining, it was goalless and Salernitana were staying up.
Raoul Bellanova, their best player on the night, skimmed the far post with a cross-cum-shot but the ball would not go in.
By that stage, virtually everyone on the Salernitana bench were looking at their phones rather than the contest in front of them.
They may even have seen Niki Maenpaa parry a Gaston Pereiro snapshot as Cagliari pushed and pushed.
Six minutes of stoppage time hardly eased the nerves of either struggler but Venezia, to their credit, battled when many a team may have downed tools with nothing at stake and Salernitana, somehow, were safe!
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