If you’re struggling to keep up with the Serie A title race, don’t worry. Chances are you’re not alone. In the space of three weeks, the three-horse race for the Scudetto turned into a duel between Napoli and Inter Milan, before the Nerazzurri’s dismal thrashing in Florence on Thursday night handed the initiative to the Partenopei.

But Antonio Conte’s men fluffed their lines on Sunday night against Udinese, meaning Inter could be back within a point if they exact revenge on Fiorentina on Monday. Meanwhile, Atalanta have seized on Napoli’s two consecutive draws and are now just five points adrift of the league leaders, breathing a new lease of life into their Scudetto hopes, which looked dead and buried at the end of January.

The tussle for the title has understandably dominated the headlines, but in terms of drama it barely scratches the surface of events at the other end of the table where the race to avoid the last relegation spot could be one of the most exhilarating in years – at least for neutral observers, that is.

Simply put, if you were a betting man you would not part with any money to predict the nature of the third team falling through the Serie B trapdoor, with six teams within four points of each other all hovering around the drop zone.

At the bottom of the table, Monza are as good as gone. The Brianzoli’s 5-1 shellacking in Rome against Lazio was their ninth defeat in the last 10 games and left them rock-bottom with 13 points in 24 matches, eight points adrift of safety.

The defeat at the Olimpico cost Salvatore Bocchetti his job, with Alessandro Nesta returning to the dugout after being sacked in December. The former Italy international, however, faces a near impossible task.

Beaten 1-0 at home by Roma on Sunday, Venezia are three points ahead of Monza but their destiny looks just as ominous. The Lagunari are without a win since December 22 and their decision to sell talismanic striker Joel Pohjanpalo to Palermo in the January transfer window conjured the image of a club waving the white flag.

The Finnish was a cult hero in the Lagoon, firing Venezia to promotion with 22 goals in 33 Serie B games last season after netting 19 in 37 in his debut campaign.

More to the point, Pohjanpalo’s six Serie A goals this season account for almost a third of Venezia’s tally of 22, the worst record in the division alongside Empoli. With 21, only Monza have scored fewer goals.

Profligacy in front of goal isn’t helped by the fact that all too often Venezia allow games to pass them by, as Eusebio Di Francesco lamented after the defeat against Roma.

“Something is missing,” the Neroverdi manager said.

“The team is trying, but there’s a lack of spark. We need to address these issues quickly. We have the players, but we need to speed up their progress or it will be too late.”

The same could be said about Como and Empoli, albeit for different reasons. In their first campaign in Serie A for over two decades, the Lariani have often given the impression of being far too good to be just two points clear of the drop, but have lacked the consistency required to pull themselves clear of the relegation zone.

Como have splurged almost €50m (£41.5m) in the January transfer window and the feeling is they will eventually motor to calmer waters as winter makes way for spring.

Heralded as Serie A’s surprise package after going unbeaten in their first six matches, Empoli have long since stopped living up to the tag as they find themselves dragged into the quagmire of the relegation zone.

Saturday night’s defeat against AC Milan at the Castellani was Empoli’s eighth in the last 11 matches in Serie A, a run of form which has seen them plunge from 10th to 17th, just one point above the relegation zone.

Empoli’s early season exploits were predicated on a solid defence which conceded just twice in six games, but the Azzurri have conceded 17 over the past 10 matches, admittedly amid a very difficult run which included fixtures against Juventus and both Milan clubs.

The only silver lining for the Tuscans is that Parma, who are currently a point below them, are arguably in an even worse position.

There are parallels between the two teams this season. Just like Roberto d’Aversa’s men, Parma impressed in the opening months of the season, their win against AC Milan in August vindicating the attacking football ethos that was the cornerstone of their promotion-winning campaign last term.

Speaking to Destination Calcio at the beginning of the season, Fabio Pecchia had pledged his team would remain committed to their brand of football and Parma have indeed scored more goals than any other team outside the top-nine in Serie A, but have won just two points points so far in this calendar year.

The Ducali have added further attacking talent last month with the signing of Sweden international Jacob Ondrejka from Royal Antwerp, part of a €17m splurge in the January transfer window.

But their attacking emphasis has been nullified by a defence that has conceded 44 goals in 24 matches, the second-most in the league behind Verona. As the old adage goes, strikers win matches and defenders win titles. In Parma’s case, their leaky defence could well cost them survival.

The same applies to Verona, who may be three points clear of the drop but have plenty to be concerned about after being thrashed 5-0 at home by Atalanta on Saturday in what Paolo Zanetti euphemistically described as a “bad day at the office”.

The Gialloblu concede over two goals every 90 minutes on average – Atalanta alone have won the two fixtures against them by an aggregate score of 11-1 this season – but their form is somewhat healthier compared to their rivals, with Verona picking up five points in the last six outings.

Zanetti was eager to see the glass half full. “How we respond now is vital,” he said.

“We’ve shown resilience in the past and we need to do it again. We’re in a strong position in the league, but we’ve also faced some tough tests. We need to learn from our mistakes and improve.”

With fixtures against Milan, Fiorentina, Juventus and Bologna over the next four weeks – which top-scorer Casper Tengsted is expected to miss because of injury – Verona can seldom afford another faux pas.

As can Cagliari and Lecce, who have both climbed up to 24 points but remain a slip up away from being dragged back into the relegation quicksands. Life in Serie A is never easy.