Football Season Guide

The past season was far from a satisfying one for Lecce, who only managed to avoid relegation at the very last gasp. They had started the season off with coach Luca Gotti at the helm but, having obtained just 2 wins out of the initial 12 weeks, they eventually handed the reins of the team to Marco Giampaolo. Giampaolo is renown for doing well at the beginning and then losing the grip on the team and things were not too different this time around. In fact, after reaching the 14th place in early February, they eventually dropped to the bottom 3 again at the end of a 13-week winless run. Two dramatic wins against top-10 sides in the last 2 weeks of the campaign, proved decisive for their survival. Lecce clearly like to live dangerously and, having waved Giampaolo good-bye, they hired Eusebio Di Francesco, who has not got a season right since 2017/2018. Last season, Lecce held by far the worst attack of the Serie A with 27 goals scored: they relied almost exclusively on Krstovic and lacked a proper back-up. Hoping that the Montenegrin striker remains at the club, they added promising 17-year-old Camarda, who distinguished himself at Milan last season but that might not be enough. On the wings, they lost back-ups Rebic, Karlsson and Sansone, who left no mark in the past campaign, while Sottil arrived from Fiorentina after a poor season on loan at Milan. Versatile Oudin, who can also act as a midfielder, returned from a spell at Sampdoria and could also be given some playing time. They suffered their main loss at the back since starting centre-back Baschirotto left for Cremonese: 19-year-old Tiago Gabriel could step up, after getting some taste of the Serie A last season, alongside Gaspar, now fully recovered from injury, unless just-arrived 20-year-old Perez proves ready for Italian football. Full-backs Kouassi and Ndaba should provide some depth in an area where they were short-manned last season. The midfield remained basically untouched but Maleh, returned from a disastrous experience at Empoli, could represent a valid back-up.