What happened in Serie A 1980-81
The previous season had been marred by the outbreak of the Totonero betting scandal, which resulted in the relegation of Lazio and Milan, while Bologna, Perugia and Avellino were docked five points.
Inter had won the Scudetto, finishing three points ahead of Juventus, with Torino in third place.
There were two major changes for the new season: teams were allowed to make two substitutions per match, with the number of players permitted on the bench increased to five, and foreign players returned to Serie A for the first time in 15 years.
Some of the new arrivals proved rather forgettable, but others were genuine champions, including Paulo Roberto Falcão, Ruud Krol, Daniel Bertoni and Liam Brady. A revolution was beginning.
Inter and Juventus were considered the main favourites for the Scudetto, with Roma and Napoli viewed as potential challengers.
September
Fiorentina and Roma made the strongest starts, with the rest of Serie A following behind. Bologna also made an encouraging beginning, almost erasing their initial points deficit.
In the first legs of the opening rounds of the European competitions, Inter beat Universitatea Craiova 2–0 in the European Cup. Roma defeated Carl Zeiss Jena 3–0 in the Cup Winners' Cup, while Juventus beat Panathinaikos 4–0 at home and Torino won 2–1 away against Molenbeek in the UEFA Cup.
The group stage of the Coppa Italia had also taken place in August and early September. Juventus, Avellino, SPAL, Fiorentina, Bologna, Lazio and Torino joined the previous season's winners, Roma, in the quarter-finals.
Fiorentina 5, Roma 5, Inter 4, Juventus 4, Torino 4, Catanzaro 4, Napoli 3, Cagliari 3, Ascoli 2, Como 2, Udinese 2, Brescia 1, Pistoiese 1, Bologna -1*, Perugia -3*, Avellino -3*
* started with a five point docking
October
In the fifth round of fixtures, Roma collapsed in Naples, losing 4–0. They were caught by Fiorentina, Inter and surprise package Catanzaro. However, the final round of the month changed the picture: Roma won away at Inter, Fiorentina drew with Brescia and Catanzaro lost at home to Perugia. The Giallorossi therefore finished October at the top of the table.
All three clubs that had started with five-point deductions had moved into positive territory. Torino also won the derby.
In Europe, Inter drew away to Universitatea Craiova in the second leg of the European Cup's first round, qualifying for the next stage. In the first leg of the second round, they won 2–1 away to Nantes.
Roma were eliminated from the Cup Winners' Cup after losing 4–0 to Carl Zeiss Jena, despite their 3–0 victory in the first leg.
Juventus and Torino both progressed in the UEFA Cup. Juventus lost 4–2 in Athens against Panathinaikos but advanced 6–4 on aggregate, while Torino drew 2–2 at home against Molenbeek after extra time. In the opening legs of the next round, Torino beat Magdeburg 3–1, whereas Juventus lost 3–1 away to Widzew Łódź.
Roma 9, Fiorentina 8, Inter 7, Catanzaro 7, Napoli 6, Torino 6, Cagliari 6, Juventus 5, Ascoli 5, Bologna 4*, Como 4, Udinese 4, Brescia 3, Pistoiese 3, Perugia 2*, Avellino 2*
* started with a five point docking
November
Roma remained top despite losing away to Cagliari, with Inter in pursuit. Juventus, who had beaten Inter during the month, were also firmly in contention.
Inter drew 1–1 with Nantes in the second leg of the European Cup's second round and qualified for the quarter-finals. Torino progressed in the UEFA Cup despite losing 1–0 in Magdeburg. Juventus, however, were eliminated by Widzew Łódź on penalties.
In the first leg of the UEFA Cup's third round, Torino lost 2–1 away to Grasshopper.
Roma 12, Inter 11, Fiorentina 10, Cagliari 10, Napoli 9**, Catanzaro 9, Juventus 9, Torino 9, Ascoli 9, Como 7, Pistoiese 7, Brescia 6**, Udinese 6, Bologna 5*, Perugia 4*, Avellino 4*
* started with a five point docking
** game in hand
December
Behind the leading pair of Roma and Inter, Juventus gradually closed the gap during December. Napoli and Torino were also within striking distance of the top.
Avellino and Perugia, having initially made progress towards overcoming their points deductions, were beginning to struggle again. One of the month's most remarkable matches was Udinese's spectacular 5–4 victory over Avellino.
Torino were eliminated from the UEFA Cup after losing to Grasshopper on penalties.
Roma 16, Inter 15, Juventus 14, Napoli 13, Torino 12, Catanzaro 11, Fiorentina 11, Brescia 11, Como 11, Cagliari 11, Pistoiese 11, Bologna 10*, Ascoli 9, Udinese 9, Avellino 7*, Perugia 6*
* started with a five point docking
January & February
The 13th round featured a major clash between Roma and Juventus, which ended goalless. Inter had the opportunity to move into first place but also drew 0–0, at home against Avellino. In the 14th round, Juventus and Napoli drew 1–1.
Inter joined Roma at the top in the 16th round when the Giallorossi were held to a home draw by Como. Roma regained their outright lead the following week after Inter drew away to Cagliari. However, another home draw for Roma in their final match of the month allowed Inter to catch them once again.
With the leading teams dropping so many points, Juventus and Napoli remained close behind. In the relegation battle, Perugia slipped further back and urgently needed to improve their results. Of the three teams that had started with five-point deductions, they were the only ones still struggling to escape danger.
Inter 24, Roma 24, Juventus 23, Napoli 23, Torino 20, Cagliari 18, Bologna 16*, Catanzaro 16, Avellino 15*, Fiorentina 15, Udinese 15, Ascoli 15, Como 14, Pistoiese 14, Brescia 13, Perugia 8*
* started with a five point docking
March
In the 19th round, Inter lost in Naples and were overtaken by the other three contenders. The following week, Napoli held Roma to a draw and Juventus joined the Giallorossi at the top. Inter lost again, falling three points behind, and their deficit grew to five after another 90 minutes, during which they lost away to Roma and Juventus won the derby.
In the 22nd round, Juventus moved into sole possession of first place when Roma drew away to Catanzaro. But the Bianconeri surrendered the lead the following week, losing to Inter while Roma beat Cagliari. Napoli were now just one point off the top.
Perugia made some progress in the relegation battle but still had a mountain to climb. Seven games remained.
Inter qualified for the European Cup semi-finals after drawing 1–1 at home against Red Star Belgrade and winning the return leg 1–0 away.
In the first legs of the Coppa Italia quarter-finals, Juventus won away to Avellino, Bologna beat Lazio in Rome, Roma won in Florence against Fiorentina, and SPAL defeated Torino at home.
Roma 32, Juventus 31, Napoli 31, Inter 28, Torino 24, Fiorentina 22, Catanzaro 22, Cagliari 22, Bologna 21*, Avellino 19*, Udinese 19, Ascoli 19, Como 18, Brescia 17, Pistoiese 16, Perugia 12*
* started with a five point docking
April
In the 24th round, Inter lost again, effectively ending their Scudetto hopes. A week later, Roma drew at home against Fiorentina and were caught by Juventus and Napoli. With five games remaining, three teams were level at the top.
But everything changed over the following 90 minutes. Juventus won in Udine, Roma drew, and both Ascoli and Napoli lost at home to last-placed Perugia, who were seemingly destined for Serie B. With four games left, Pistoiese also looked likely to go down, while several clubs remained involved in the battle to avoid the final relegation place.
Inter missed out on the European Cup final. They lost 2–0 away to Real Madrid in the first leg of the semi-final and, despite winning the return leg 1–0, were eliminated.
Juventus, Bologna, Roma and Torino qualified for the Coppa Italia semi-finals.
Juventus 37, Roma 36, Napoli 35, Inter 31, Fiorentina 27, Bologna 25*, Catanzaro 25, Torino 24, Cagliari 24, Avellino 23*, Como 22, Ascoli 21, Brescia 20, Udinese 20, Pistoiese 16, Perugia 15*
* started with a five point docking
May
Napoli drew at home against Fiorentina in the first game of the month, losing further ground, although they recovered some of it in the following round.
The 27th round brought the much-anticipated Juventus–Roma clash. In the second half, a goal by Ramón Turone was disallowed for offside, a decision that remains controversial to this day.
With two rounds remaining, Juventus had 40 points, Roma 39 and Napoli 38. Roma still had hopes of winning the title, but Juventus beat Napoli in the penultimate round and then defeated Fiorentina in the final matchday to clinch the Scudetto.
The relegation battle was equally tense. With one game left, Avellino, Brescia and Ascoli had 24 points, while Como and Udinese had 23. The final fixtures were Ascoli–Brescia, Avellino–Roma, Como–Bologna and Udinese–Napoli.
At half-time, Ascoli, Brescia and Avellino were drawing, Como were winning and Udinese were losing. All five clubs were therefore level on 24 points, except Udinese, who were still on 23. In the second half, however, Udinese turned their match around, leaving five teams level on 25 points at the end of the season.
The head-to-head standings determined the outcome. Avellino, Ascoli and Udinese had the strongest records among the five teams, while Como and Brescia fared worst. Como survived, but Brescia's inferior head-to-head goal difference sent them down alongside Perugia and Pistoiese.
In the Coppa Italia semi-finals, Torino beat Bologna 5–4 on aggregate after extra time, while Roma eliminated Juventus 2–1 on aggregate. Both legs of the final between Roma and Torino ended 1–1, and Roma won the trophy on penalties.
Juventus qualified for the European Cup, Roma for the Cup Winners' Cup, and Napoli and Inter for the UEFA Cup.
Roberto Pruzzo of Roma finished as the league's top scorer with 18 goals.
Milan, Genoa and Cesena were promoted from Serie B.
Juventus 44, Roma 42, Napoli 38, Inter 36, Fiorentina 32, Cagliari 30, Bologna 29*, Catanzaro 29, Torino 26, Avellino 25*, Ascoli 25, Udinese 25, Como 25, Brescia 25, Pistoiese 16, Perugia 15*
* started with a five point docking
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