By Anthony Barbagallo
Key points:
- Serie C’s Group C is tipped to be Italy’s most entertaining and competitive football league for the 2020-21 season.
- Three former Serie A clubs (Bari, Palermo and Catania) are in a race to achieve promotion.
- The Sicilian derby (Derby di Sicilia) returns after a seven-year absence.
For the first time in Serie C history, the third division’s southern group will arguably be more entertaining and competitive than Italy’s top tier.
The Serie C contains three groups, all based on Italy’s northern, central and southern geographic locations. With 60 teams in total, the four limited spots for promotion to the second division are tough to obtain – particularly when it comes time to the national playoffs. This is what makes Italy’s third division unique and complicated in comparison to England’s 24-team competition.
But Serie C’s southern Group C is the one many football fans in Italy will have their eyes glued to for the 2020-21 season. This ‘Group of Death’ will feature quality sides such as Bari, Palermo, Catania, Trapani, Juve Stabia, Ternana and Catanzaro. Several of these historical clubs, especially Palermo, Bari and Catania, have experienced many years of playing in Italy’s top-flight in the past.
Many football pundits and Serie A viewers will argue that Italy’s elite league boasts Cristiano Ronaldo and a large pool of talented footballers. But with the number of quality sides battling for promotion in the upcoming Serie C southern group campaign, Italian fans will be getting their money’s worth with numerous rivalry fixtures to be contested in a lower league.
With Palermo and Catania preparing to lock horns in the Sicilian derby (Derby di Sicilia) after a seven-year absence, this fierce rivalry will be a treat to watch just like the classic days in Serie A. These historical Sicilian sides are known for boasting some of Italy’s most passionate fanbases. The new ownership and coaches of Catania and Palermo will be looking to take Sicily’s biggest clubs back to the centre stage of Italian football. Trapani, the other Sicilian side from island’s west, will be out to make amendments after recently being relegated from the second division. The Granta (Maroons) will also renew their rivalry with neighbours Palermo and other Sicilian compatriots Catania.
Another renowned club that will take part in this Serie C battle is SSC Bari – one of the largest sides in Italy’s south. After the Apulia club failed to achieve Serie B promotion last season, this new competitive campaign could prove to be an enormous feat to overcome. This is a club that has spent its entire existence playing in Italy’s top divisions – just like Palermo and Catania. Jeremy Bowling – an English Bari supporter living in Italy’s southern city – is sceptical on whether his side might get trapped in the third division for a while due to this league’s highly competitive nature.
“Bari will be expected to do well under new Sicilian coach Gaetano Auteri but will have to make changes in playing style. If Bari doesn’t achieve promotion this season, it will be interesting to see how long owner Aurelio De Laurentiis can keep throwing money at the project,” Jeremy stated.
Because Group C in Serie C has at least six teams capable of achieving a first-place finish, there is enormous pressure on large clubs such as Bari, Palermo and Catania. Jeremy Bowling warns it can be a nightmare for any big side that misses out on the first-place finish and automatic promotion to Serie B.
“One thing I do know is that with a difficult group like this, Bari wouldn’t want to take part in the playoffs again. The same goes for Catania and Palermo – there are many quality sides in the central and northern Serie C groups who have more experience in the playoffs system.”
Serie C’s Group C may be a nightmare for the big sides in Sicily and Bari, but it will be an entertaining feast for the fans of these clubs and neutral football fans in Italy.
