Capello's Serie A Insights: Inter's Dominance and Juventus' Struggles
Fabio Capello has seen enough Serie A seasons to recognise a hierarchy when he sees one. With less than two weeks to go before the 2026-27 campaign kicks off, he looks at the league table in his mind and still sees Inter out in front, untouched, unbothered, and unchallenged.
In his La Gazzetta dello Sport column, the former Milan and Juventus coach didn’t dress it up: the gap to the champions is still wide, and time is running out to close it.
Inter ahead, rivals scrambling
Corriere dello Sport had already sounded the alarm this week, claiming the top Serie A clubs are collectively “missing” 20 starters with the season almost upon them. Capello agrees. The market feels late, the squads incomplete, the work unfinished.
“The distance between them (Milan and Juventus) and Inter, the champions of Italy, seems difficult to bridge in such a short space of time,” he wrote.
The message is clear. Inter look like a team ready to defend a title. Their pursuers still resemble works in progress.
Juventus: Not a Spalletti team yet
Capello’s reading of Juventus is blunt. Luciano Spalletti’s imprint, the aggressive, structured, automatic football that defined his Napoli, is not visible yet in Turin.
“Juventus don’t yet seem like a Luciano Spalletti side to me,” Capello noted, underlining that the transformation is far from complete.
There are positives. He likes the arrivals of Randal Kolo Muani and Kerim Alajbegovic, signings that give Juve a sharper edge in attack and more solutions in the final third. But the compliments stop there. For Capello, the real issue sits at the other end of the pitch.
“Juve still has a big problem and that is the goalkeeper,” he wrote, making it clear that, in his eyes, the position cannot be left untouched.
He stressed that his view comes “with all due respect to Michele Di Gregorio,” yet described the current situation as “irreversible”. The conclusion is stark: Juventus need a new No.1, and they need him now.
Vicario over Suzuki
Several names have circulated. One of them is Zion Suzuki, linked with a move to PSG from Parma and then potentially to Juventus on loan. Capello, though, looks elsewhere.
“Many names have been mentioned and from what I’ve seen, the Old Lady might prefer a ‘buffer’ option, postponing the spending until next summer,” he wrote.
If that short-term solution arrives on loan, Capello has no doubts about his pick: Guglielmo Vicario of Tottenham.
For him, the reasoning is straightforward. Vicario has already survived and excelled under the glare of a major club and a demanding league in London. Suzuki, by contrast, still sits in the category of promise rather than proof. At a club under pressure to win immediately, Capello clearly favours the goalkeeper who has already shown he can handle a big stage.
Milan: An “open construction site”
If Juventus are incomplete, Milan, in Capello’s eyes, are something more chaotic.
“Milan look like an open construction site: Only the work in progress sign is missing, yet the start of the Serie A season is just around the corner,” he wrote.
The concern isn’t just tactical or structural. It’s also about commitment and timing. The news that Mike Maignan and Adrien Rabiot will extend their holidays and only return a week before the season has not gone down well with him.
“Milan are still waiting for two big names in Maignan and Rabiot – by the way, I didn’t like the news of their return being delayed by four days at all,” Capello admitted.
Pre-season is already winding down. Yet new signings Gila and Ramos have barely been seen, and the starting XI that Ruben Amorim is supposed to build his project around remains largely theoretical. The new coach, pictured on the touchline in Jakarta during a pre-season friendly against Chelsea, still appears to be working with moving pieces rather than a settled group.
Leão, the crowd, and the Cardinale–Amorim summit
Capello’s unease deepens when the subject turns to Rafael Leão. The Portuguese forward publicly angled for a Premier League move, a stance that, in Capello’s view, has complicated his relationship with Milan and their supporters.
“I get the impression that there’s still a bit of confusion around the Rossoneri, starting with Rafael Leao’s situation,” he wrote. “Rafa overestimated himself by publicly calling for the Premier League and, if he stays, I would be wary of the San Siro reaction to the first time he fails to run.”
That is a sharp warning. San Siro can adore a star, but it can also turn quickly when it senses a lack of commitment. One half-hearted sprint, one loose tracking run, and the tension could be audible.
Capello points to the upcoming meeting between Gerry Cardinale and Amorim as a crucial moment. For him, that conversation must bring clarity: on the market, on the dressing room hierarchy, on the identity of this new Milan.
“I hope that the next meeting between Cardinale and Amorim will bring some order and provide the right boost to sort things out on the market heading into the final 20 days,” he wrote.
The clock is ticking. Inter look ready. Juventus and Milan, in Capello’s ruthless assessment, still resemble teams trying to assemble the plane while already taxiing down the runway.
