Atalanta, Christmas at the top. Cardinale punishes Inter: they won the Scudetto but went bankrupt

Let's leave out the rest of the document, and the revelation by ad Furlani of having closed with Paolo Maldini because it was 'necessary to realise the vision' (sic), but does it seem appropriate, with such moonlight, to bring out these pearls of wisdom? The Rossoneri house is burning and Cardinale talks about the curtains and carpets. By now we are at the 'visions'.

And the allusion to Inter? Which, moreover, is travelling at a tennis pace? Someone get a communications expert to suggest to Cardinale (and also Furlani) to keep quiet when things go wrong.

With a team going on like a dismasted sailing ship, fans want to be reassured about the immediate future, not about Redbird's financial reports which, incidentally, are not even that brilliant, as the debt still amounts to 489 million and must be paid back to Elliot over the next three years.

Leao is injured, Hernandez is the ghost of the one who won the Scudetto, and Cardinale talks about cash flow and brand value. By the way, if the best players lose value, the brand is unlikely to benefit, or is it? And does it make sense for a coach, Fonseca, to always go on a collision course with his most charismatic champions?

But back to the top, where the sky is covered with stars. In Bergamo, Father Christmas brings presents to everyone. Besides being the most liveable city in Italy, Bergamo is going through a magical moment with Atalanta. They scored their eleventh consecutive victory against Empoli, overtaking Napoli, who had beaten Genoa 2-1 on Saturday. A great celebration for Gasp's boys, who have been travelling at the speed of light for two and a half months.

In its fortress (now always sold out), Atalanta, in order not to fall behind, had the 'obligation' to win. To stand up to the pressure that, until some time ago, was its weak point. Instead, even if after only 13 minutes it suffered the 1-0 defeat by Colombo, the Dea did not lose heart, bending Empoli (3-2) with a final magic of De Ketelaere (author of a double). For CDK, it was the tenth goal of the season. Speaking of maximising cash flow, what does that genius Cardinale think of the resurgence of the blond phenomenon?

And Napoli? It must be said that Conte's team is no joke. True, in Genoa they risked being caught up in the second half due to a turnaround that did not please their coach. However, the partenopei are not giving up an inch. Despite some strange alternations (excellent first half, heavy drop in the second), they still managed to reach the goal in the end.

'The boys know I'm very angry,' mumbles Conte. The coach knows these dynamics well: scudettos are also won because of these details. However, 38 points are eleven more than last year. An excellent result. But Conte's added value is precisely this punctiliousness that verges on mania. 'We were passive, we chose to suffer,' concludes Italy's most dissatisfied coach.

Paradoxically, Genoa is happier, satisfied that they made their opponents sweat. Viera, the coach, was impressed by the second half of the Rossoblù. "It must give us confidence for the future," says the Frenchman, even complimenting Balotelli, who went wild in the final minutes. For the series, 'sometimes they come back', Balo is back. We'll see how long he stays. Anyway, a Merry Christmas to him too.

In this weekend of gift-hunting, Lazio, after the shake-up with Inter, regained victory in Lecce with a Marusic shot two minutes from the end. A 2-1 that rewarded the Biancocelesti a little too much, with an extra player (expulsion Guilbert) for almost the entire second half. The Salentini also hit a crossbar with Kaba in mid-recovery, but it could be seen that fate was on Lazio's side, who were good at reacting after last week's fall at the Olimpico. In five days' time they will face Atalanta. Certainly less generous than Lecce.

We conclude with two pieces of news: the first is that Juve returned to winning ways by beating Monza 2-1. In advantage with McKennie, and having suffered the draw of the Brianzoli (Birindelli), the bianconeri closed the match with Nico Gonzalez. What a struggle, however, in the second half. Monza is black jersey, but did not play badly.

Motta's team joins (at 31) Fiorentina, who host Udinese in Florence today. Also tonight, Inter, third at 34, will play at the San Siro. If they win, they will be one point behind Napoli (38) and three points behind Atalanta, in the lead at 40. To say that Inter's match will be a walk in the park is pretty obvious. Never get distracted, though. Inzaghi, who is on his way to a contract renewal (2028), knows this and will do all he can to

We were forgetting Bologna, who, thanks to their success over the disastrous Torino (0-2) remain in seventh place with 28 points, the same as the redblues had last year with Thiago Motta. Europe is not a taboo. Happy of course, the Italian coach. 'A victory that allows us a peaceful Christmas,' says the coach, finally calm after having given his numbers in Florence. At Christmas we are all better. Even Italian.

Even former coach Roberto Mancini says he regrets leaving the Italy bench. Better late than never. However, we understand each other....