Familiar name looks likeliest to end Serie A's wait for a Champions League winner

The Champions League opening phase has already reached its halfway stage and after four games, there are a trio of teams who so far have the perfect record. 

Arsenal and Bayern Munich have arguably been the two most impressive teams in the competition's league phase, but are joined at the top of the table by Inter Milan, all of whom have twelve points. 

Inter's performances have once again raised the notion of a Serie A side lifting the trophy this season, ending a 15-year wait for an Italian winner since Inter last triumphed in 2010. 

Ahead of Matchday five of this season's Champions League, DAZN News assesses how each Serie A team has fared and the expectations for the second half of the league phase. 

Inter 

Once again, the Nerazzurri are the poster boys for Serie A in this season's competition, quietly going about their business and racking up four wins from four to sit alongside the Gunners and Bayern at the top of the table. 

They began their campaign with an away win in Ajax, defeating the Dutch giants thanks to two Marcus Thuram goals and have rarely needed to get out of second gear since.

Comfortable victories over Slavia Prague and Union Saint-Gilloise followed before conceding their only goal of the league phase so far in the 2-1 victory over Kairat at the San Siro. 

However, things are about to get a lot tougher. It's fair to say, Christian Chivu's men have yet to face a big European name in the competition, but their final four games present a quartet of blockbuster ties. 

They face Atletico Madrid this week and then host both Liverpool and Arsenal at the San Siro before finishing up against Borussia Dortmund. We'll know for sure how much of a contender Inter are on the other side of those fixtures. 

Games to go 

• Atletico Madrid (A) - Wednesday, November 26
• Liverpool (H) - Tuesday, December 9
• Arsenal (H) - Tuesday, January 20 2026
• Borussia Dortmund (A) - Wednesday, January 28, 2026 

(C)Getty images

Napoli 

Title winners in Serie A twice in the last three seasons, what Napoli have failed to do thus far is really make a mark on the Champions League and it's the same story in 2025-26.

Antonio Conte's men opened their campaign at Manchester City, but the standout fixture was quickly ruined by the sending off of Giovanni Di Lorenzo and they went on to lose 2-0 to the Premier League side. 

Napoli did bounce back with a win over Sporting, but were then embarrassed on Matchday three at the hands of PSV. The Dutch side thrashed the Italian champions 6-2 in one of the shocks of this season's competition. 

A goalless draw with Eintract Frankfurt steadied the ship, but they'll need to pick up wins in their next three games before hosting Chelsea if they are to qualify for the knockout round, never mind think about winning the competition. 

Games to go 

• Qarabag (H) - Tuesday, November 25
• Benfica (A) - Wednesday, December 10
• Copenhagen (A) - Tuesday, January 20 2026
• Chelsea (H) - Wednesday, January 28 2026

Getty

Juventus 

The Old Lady have already given their season a reboot, by replacing Igor Tudor with Luciano Spalletti after a disappointing start to both their domestic season and in Europe. 

In fact, Juve go into Matchday 5 still looking for a first win in this season's Champions League. Not really a sign that they'll be contenders come 2026. 

They began this season's competition with the thrilling 4-4 draw with Borussia Dortmund and have also shared points with both Villarreal and Sporting, as well as suffering a narrrow defeat to Real Madrid. 

The games in the second half of the league phase do look kinder, and they'll have to be or Juventus could be sent packing before we get to the knockouts. 

Games to go 

• Bodo/Glimt (A) - Tuesday, November 25
• Pafos (H) - Wednesday, December 10
• Benfica (H) - Wednesday, January 21 2026
• Monaco (A) - Wednesday, January 28 2026​

Atalanta 

Already an outside bet for an Italian win, Atalanta don't look like troubling the big guns of the competition anytime soon, although their best performances have come in the Champions League. 

Forgetting the opening day pasting at the hands of European champions PGS, the Italians have beaten Club Brugge and won away at Marseille, but it still wasn't enough to save Ivan Juric's job thanks to their dismal league form. 

Raffaele Palladino has taken over for the second half of the league phase, where there are games you can see them picking up enough points to at least make the play-off round. But beyond that looks doubtful. 

Games to go 

• Frankfurt (A) - Wednesday, November 26
• Chelsea (H) - Tuesday, December 9
• Athletic Club (H) - Wednesday, January 21 2026
• Union Saint-Gilloise (A) - Wednesday, January 28 2026

How to watch Serie A on DAZN? 

DAZN brings fans closer to the action with live coverage of all 10 matches per round, delivering world-class Italian football to more fans in more ways in the United Kingdom and Ireland, Canada, and the U.S (Spanish-language only).

You can watch Serie A games via the DAZN App, available on smart TVs, phones, tablets, streaming devices, games consoles and web browsers.

If you do not have the App already then just follow these instructions....

• Download the free DAZN App from your normal App store on your TV, phone, tablet, or streaming device
• On a laptop or PC,  visit www.DAZN.com/home
• Select 'Get started' or 'log in'
• Enter your email address, or sign up via the Apple, Google or Facebook options
• You then have access to all of DAZN's free content, including the Matchroom boxing channel and FIFA+
• Then find our Serie A page and click 'buy now'