Serie A Title race: How Napoli, Inter, AC Milan, Roma and more can win or lose the Scudetto this season

We're now entering the most crucial phase of the Serie A season after an exciting start of the campaign that didn't see a team dominating the others as it often can happen and as is happening elsewhere in Europe. Arsenal are at the top of the Premier League standings with a six-point margin, Real Madrid are five points ahead of Barcelona in Spain while Bayern Munich are also five points ahead of RB Leipzig. In Italy, things couldn't be tighter at the top. Napoli currently lead Serie A with 22 points, followed closely by three teams on 21 (Inter, AC Milan, and AS Roma) while Juventus and Bologna sit just four points behind the league leaders. Everything is on the table, and all the top teams can concretely hope to win the Scudetto this season. Here's the main reason why each of them will and won't win the title.

Napoli - 22 points 

Why they will win: Antonio Conte's side won the Scudetto last year and are still the main candidates to win again this season despite some key injuries that are affecting the roster, such as the most recent one to Kevin de Bruyne, who will miss at least three months of action. With their experience and Conte's winning mentality, Napoli have all the elements to stay at the top and fight for another Scudetto.

Why they won't win: Injuries might affect the team in the long term and playing the Champions League this season is affecting the performances of the team in both domestic and European leagues. After focusing on just one game per week last season, things are quite different this year. Playing every three days has made it difficult for Conte to rotate his squad, especially with the current injury issues.

Inter - 21 points

Why they will win: Cristian Chivu's team are now in a great form and after a challenging start the new coach was able to transform the way Inter are playing. Inter, after losing last season's title on the last matchday of the championship, will have a sense of revenge against Napoli and probably have the most experienced roster in the Italian Serie A to make it happen. 

Why they won't win: The lack of experience for the Romanian coach in his first year with Inter can have an impact on the performances of the team in the long run, especially if we compare it to his rivals such as Antonio Conte, Massimiliano Allegri or Luciano Spalletti. Chivu is showing to be a great manager, but he will also need time to make some mistakes that will help him in the future. On top of it, Inter were able to play two Champions League finals in three years under Simone Inzaghi, and despite the great European runs were only able to win one Serie A title in four years. 

AC Milan - 21 points

Why they will win: The Rossoneri started off a new cycle under Massimiliano Allegri this summer and so far it's working perfectly. AC Milan can repeat what Napoli have done in the past season, when Conte's side focused on the league as they were not playing European soccer and helped them to win the title in his first year at the club. All the other teams are competing in Europe, and ironically, that could turn into an advantage for Allegri's side in the long run.

Why they won't win: At the same time, AC Milan's summer revolution will take some more time to arrive where Allegri wants and the experience of teams like Napoli and Inter can become a factor. The Rossoneri are also lacking a true central striker who can lead the line effectively, despite featuring both United States men's national team star Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leao in their attack.

AS Roma - 21 points

Why they will win: Gian Piero Gasperini's side start of the season has been really promising and the last time the Giallorossi won the Scudetto was in 2001, meaning there is a lot of pressure for him to succeed. At the same time, if Roma enter the spring within close reach of the Serie A leaders, they could find an additional source of motivation to make a serious title run.

Why they won't win: This is only the first season under the new coach and it's probably too early for them to compete against the other teams to win the Scudetto. AS Roma are in the process of rebuilding under former Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini, but they don't yet appear to be at the same level as their main rivals. Some of the new signings, such as striker Evan Ferguson and winger Wesley, have also struggled to meet the expectations so far.

Bologna - 18 points

Why they will win: Compared to the rivals Bologna are the ones with the least pressure on their shoulders and they are also the only team with Napoli that kept the same coach from last season, something that can definitely help them in the long term. 

Why they won't win: Despite playing exciting soccer and scoring some key wins in the first part of the season, their roster is not comparable to the ones of Napoli or Inter, for example. They are also playing Europa League, which doesn't help Vincenzo Italiano to rotate his players as much as he wants ahead of the key Serie A games. 

Juventus - 18 points 

Why they will win: The Bianconeri had a disappointing start of the season under Igor Tudor but the club decided to sack the Croatian manager and hired Luciano Spalletti, one of the most experienced managers available. His work ethic and tactical knowledge can help this team to improve in the short term, and Juventus are not far away from the top of the standings. 

Why they won't win: It's always difficult for a new manager to come in once the season is underway and implement drastic changes. Spalletti will likely need time to adapt the current squad to his tactical vision but time is exactly what he doesn't have.