The road to Serie B means topping each Serie C group from north to south. In 2024, Mantova, Juve Stabia and Cesena earned automatic promotion from their respective gironi, with Carrarese winning the playoffs final.
Ternana, Ascoli, Feralpisalò and Lecco were all relegated from Serie B, and all four are serious candidates to bounce straight back up. With that in mind, here are a few clubs that should cause them problems.
Group C, Serie C
Benevento
Benevento strengthened over the summer with the return of Gennaro Acampora from Bari and three signings aimed at generating more scoring chances: midfielder Filippo Nardi arrived from Cremonese, while strikers Davide Lamesta and Jacopo Manconi joined from Rimini Modena respectively, each with a €300,000 price tag, according to Football Transfers.
Following a third-place finish in 2023-24 and a playoff campaign that saw them ousted by eventual winner Carrarese, Benevento manager Gaetano Auteri must make up for the loss of experienced ball carriers Riccardo Improta and Amato Ciciretti.
Auteri, who arrived last December, has brought stability in his second stint in central Campania, defeated only six times in 31. The 63-year-old prefers a 4-3-3 attacking lineup with traffic directed through Acampora, David Lamesta and Angelo Talia.
The excellent form of ex-Pisa right-back Filippo Berra, who scored against Cavese, means there’s no room for Gaetano Letizia. The latter ended his long-standing affiliation with La Strega in August by mutual consent.
Home form will be all-important. Two wins from two at the Stadio Ciro Vigorito is the perfect start; the 4-1 trouncing of Potenza hoists Benevento to within a point of the top four.
Benevento Calcio XI: (4-3-3) Nunziante – Berra, Capellini, Oukhadda, Ferrara – Talia, Acampora, Prisco – Lamesta, Perlingieri, Manconi
We’ve cued up the second of Acampora’s strikes against Potenza for you:
Catania FC
Considering the glaring inconsistencies of last term, Catania are undoubtedly a bold inclusion in this list. However, the Rossazzurri’s undefeated start to the season – including the narrow victory over Benevento – is a sign that this Sicilian job is maturing rapidly.
Catania are owned and run by Italo-Australians, including former Parma players Mark Bresciano and Vince Grella. Apart from Stefano Sturaro, Gli Elefanti have strengthened their promotion bid, securing Roberto Inglese (Parma and Napoli) and Filippo D’Andrea (Audace). Moreover, Domenico Toscano, the man behind Cesena’s rise to Serie B earlier this year, is the new manager.
Two tough away fixtures in Sorrento and Biella (against Juventus Next Gen team) have tested Toscano’s three-man defence, having only conceded for the first time on the weekend. Mario Ierardi and Matteo Di Gennaro are two fresh faces in front of Latvian goalkeeper Klavs Bethers, who begins his second season between the sticks.
Following 71 matches and nine goals in Serie B over the past two years at Ternana and Perugia, Gregorio Luperini arrived for €300,000. The former Italy U18, along with Francesco Di Tacchio and Luca Verna, will add muscle to a revitalised midfield, solving the majority of issues faced last season.
In total, the Pelligra ownership group has only forked out for Luperini’s fee, a stark contrast to the Serie A glory days when Gionatha Spinesi, Giuseppe Mascara and Gonzalo Bergessio shined during Catania’s eight-year spell in the top flight.
Catania FC XI: (3-4-2-1) Bethers – Castellini, Di Gennaro, Ierardi – Anastasio, Sturaro, Di Tacchio, Guglielmotti – Luperini, Carpani – Lunetta
Here is Inglese’s clinical strike against Juventus Next Gen.
Juventus U23 Next Gen
Serie A, La Liga and Premier League fans have all heard of Enzo Barrenechea, Grigoris Kastanos, Matias Soule, Samuel Iling-Junior, Nicolò Fagioli, Radu Dragusin and Koni De Winter – all former Next Gen players.
Make no mistake, the Juventus U23 side is all about development rather than a legitimate push for Serie B promotion. The club first competed in Serie C in 2018 but has never finished higher than seventh (2023-24). The squad also allows for older heads: 35-year-old striker Simone Guerra (17 goals last season), Fabrizio Poli (35) and Filippo Scaglia (32).
The ability to develop and nurture their teenage starlets at a professional level is paying off for some, with Nicolo Savona and Samuel Mbangula – two important members of Thiago Motta’s senior side – progressing through 62 collective Serie C appearances in 2023-24. Joseph Nonge has since been loaned out to Troyes, Riccardo Turricchia to Catanzaro, Nikola Sekulov to Sampdoria, while Luis Hasa signed permanently for Lecce.
Despite their north Italian base in the Piedmontese town of Biella, Lega Pro mysteriously entered Paolo Montero’s team into the southern group in 2024-25, an added boost for the Juventus fans diaspora.
Juventus Next Gen XI: (3-4-2-1) Daffara – Stivanello, Felipe, Scaglia – Comenencia, Palumbo, Peeters, Cudrig – Papadopoulos, Afena-Gyan – Guerra
Like Benevento, Juve were also eliminated by higher-seeded Carrarese during the Playoff phase following the 3-3 aggregate draw in May. They’re a side that throws caution to the wind, losing as many games as they win, with barely a goalless draw. Expect Pedro Felipe and Cosimo da Graca to get more playing time and new signings Luis Semedo and Felix Afena-Gyan (yes, Jose Mourinho’s gem of 2022) to add impact.
On that note, enjoy Afena-Gyan’s stunning 20-yard volley, which he scored on his Next Gen debut against Catania.
