Pierluigi Gollini (7 points): the Atalanta goalkeeper re-claimed the starting job after some supposed disagreements with the coach and Marco Sportiello’s blunder in Madrid and answered the ball by shooting the gap in a hurry coming out of the goal in the only couple of times Verona managed to come close to the goal.
Adam Marusic (9 points): Lazio needed an extra something to topple Udinese and he provided it, gliding through defenders in the box before firing it right in the top corner, beyond the reach of the goalkeeper and the other men that were protecting the line. He is up to two goals and three assists in the campaign.
Luca Caldirola (5 points): Benevento withstood a prolonged siege by Juventus with tremendous discipline, clogging up the spaces as much as possible. They did it without their defensive leader Kamil Glik, so it was Caldirola who quarterbacked the back-line and he did it spotlessly. They inevitably had at times to rely on the heroics of Lorenzo Montipò, but they managed to keep a clean sheet in an improbable spot.
Tommaso Augello (5 points): he did not pick up offensive bonuses but he was a force motoring up and down the left flank in the Torino tilt and one of his scampers opened up the space for Antonio Candreva’s game-winner.
Nikola Maksimovic (5 points): the Napoli back-line held Roma’s offense one in check with ease throughout Sunday’s crunch contest. Kalidou Koulibaly was flashier and fared a little better, but he was docked a point because of a yellow card, so the nod goes to his partner in crime on the evening.
Dries Mertens (10 points): the Belgian genius led the dances against Roma with a dazzling brace, hitting the net on a cheeky free kick, where he surprised Pau Lopez on his post with a potent strike, and tucking home a header after being freed up by a gorgeous combination between his teammates. Unsurprisingly, Napoli have turned the corner when he and Victor Osimhen resumed producing.
Ruslan Malinovskyi (8 points): he stepped up to the plate and converted a PK to give his team the lead against the stingy Verona and completed his day by setting up Duvan Zapata with a quality through ball on the second goal as well. He is gaining some notches in the pecking order of Atalanta’s always crowded front-line.
Antonio Candreva (6 points): Sampdoria completely engulfed Torino in the back and therefore the goal of the winger on a routine finish from inside the box at the end of a counter was enough to come out on top. He had not scored in nine games, but he still remained on the radar with some assists and for his mammoth role in the Blucerchiati’s offense.
Andreas Skov Olsen (4 points): coach Sinisa Mihajlovic is giving him more and more minutes at Riccardo Orsolini’s expenses and he paid off the trust with a difficult sliding tap-in to complete the comeback against Crotone, bagging his first goal since September.
Gianluca Scamacca (8 points): he showed why he was such in high demand in previous window as, after some quiet months, he puts his full arsenal in display versus Parma. He spearheaded Genoa’s rally with a point-blank finish and then finished off the enemies with a deadly accurate strike from distance.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (4 points): the return of the Swedish star gave Milan an immediate boost and he returned to the stat-sheet right away, beating the offside trap with a sneaky move and keeping his aplomb in front of the goalie. He arguably could have had an even bigger day, but his presence alone opened up a ton of stuff up front for the Rossoneri. He has many goals (15) as appearances.
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