A weekly recap of all the latest happenings in Italy, including transfer news and rumors.

Florence

We begin our trip with a Fiorentina side that has been rather busy in the last few days. The Viola have recently confirmed three important signings. First, the signing of Peruvian national Juan Manuel Vargas has finally been made official. Vargas caught the eye of many clubs around Europe with his dazzling play for Serie A minnows Catania. A move to a bigger club was inevitable, with Fiorentina eventually beating out Real Madrid for the services of the left back. Fiorentina have also strengthed their back line with another important signing, Gianluca Comotto from Torino. Comotto was captain of Toro during this past season, but injury troubles kept him out for most of the second half. And to top it off, Brazilian wiz-kid Jefferson has signed a five-year contract with the Viola, but he will likely be loaned out to a Serie B team to gain some Italian footballing experience.

Rome

After Nicola Amoruso’s move to the eternal city fell through, Lazio have picked up U-21 Argentine starlet Mauro Zarate. Zarate, who spent last season on loan at Birmingham City, is said to be playing a key role in the upcoming season for the Bioncolesti. Lazio president Claudio Lotito coined the young striker as the most important signing of the season. In addition, Lazio have picked up another young forward in 19-year-old Czech talent Libor Kozak. Meanwhile, Swiss winger Valon Behrami has reiterated his intent to leave, but has shrugged off rumors linking him to West Ham. Behrami hopes for a move to the Bundesliga.

Milan

Drama continues over Frank Lampard’s possible move to Inter. The Italian champions are hoping to make three big signings to reinforce their club and defend their title. They have apparently sent their final offer for Lampard, who is described by a source as being 60/40 in favor of a move to San Siro. Inter are also turning their attention to Roma’s Brazilian ace Mancini. Roma have lowered their initial demands from 15 million euros to 13 million. Inter initially offered 10, but are hoping that a 12 million dollar bid might satisfy the high demands of their rival club. To round up their high profile signings, Jose Mourinho is hoping to bring in Porto midfielder Ricardo Quaresma. While sources say Quaresma’s move to Inter is imminent, Porto prsesident Pinto da Costa has denied receiving any offers for the Portuguese national.

AC Milan are also still hoping to land a big summer signing, but have made a stance that they will not overpay. The Rossoneri have been chasing Premiership stars Emmanuel Adebayor and Didier Drogba. Sources say they are not out of the running just yet for either of the two. As Milan continue their search for one of Europe’s top marksmen, they deny that their star Brazilian Kaka is going anywhere, after reports surfaced that Chelsea prepared a giant 94 million euro bid for Kaka’s services.

Lecce

We end our trip down south with Lecce, who are back in Seire A after a short absence and have no intention of leaving any time soon. The southern minnows are hoping to land a prolific forward, and they have set their sights on several targets including Emiliano Bonazzoli and unsettled Fiorentina striker Daniele Cacia. Lecce will have competition for both players, with Bonazzoli being linked with a move back to Reggina, as well as Cacia being pursued by Catania. Lecce will have a tough road ahead of them after they decided to part ways with manager Giuseppe Papadopulo, who lead them to their recent promotion. They have decided to hire former Siena boss Mario Beretta.

Southern minnows Lecce are back in Serie A after an exciting and tense playoff finale which saw them send off Albinoleffe 2-1 on aggregate.

Lecce had the advantage entering the match after they had won the first leg in Bergamo by a score of 1-0. It didn’t take them long to please the home fans on Sunday, with Elvis Abbruscato finding the back of the net after just eight minutes into the match.

The Giallorossi defense had been solid all year, conceding a league best 29 goals. They would manage to hold on until the 73rd minute when Francesco Ruopolo got one back for Albinoleffe. Unfortunately for the Bergamo side, it was all they had left in them and Lecce would hold on for the 2-1 aggregate victory and earn a ticket to Serie A next season.

Lecce returns to the top flight after a relatively short stint in Serie B that lasted only two seasons. The new Serie A table is as follows:

Atalanta
Bologna
Cagliari
Catania
Chievo
Fiorentina
Genoa
Inter
Juventus
Lazio
Lecce
Milan
Napoli
Palermo
Reggina
Roma
Sampdoria
Siena
Torino
Udinese

It’s time for the Wednesday staple that recaps the latest happenings in Italy, from top to toe.

Transfers

Napoli have scored right-winger Christian Maggio from Sampdoria. Maggio’s future had been uncertain in recent weeks, even with a move to Aston Villa being mentioned as a possibility. All rumors can now be put to rest as the 26-year-old pens a five year deal with the Azzurri.

“I’m happy to be able to play for a club as ambitious and prestigious as Napoli,” said Maggio. “I’m looking forward to start the season.”

The actual amount of the transfer fee is said to be in the €10-11 million area. In other transfer news, Udinese have snapped up talented young midfielder Nicolas Corvetto. The Chilean starlet was recently part of the national squad that finished runner-up to Italy in the recent Toulon youth tournament. Corvetto joins an Udine side that already have two other Chileans on their roster.

Rumors

Contrary to prior belief, the agent of David Suazo has ruled out a move away from Inter. A move seemed almost certain for the out of favor striker, who still managed to net 8 goals in only 9 starting appearances this season. The arrival of Jose Mourinho also added fuel to rumors that Suazo could be headed elsewhere, as the tactician is aiming to bring in new talent to the roster of the recent Serie A champions.

Croatian hitman Igor Budan will likely leave recently relegated Parma and return to Serie A. Palermo, Budan’s former club, are searching for a replacement for Amauri and seem to be leading the race for his services. Budan netted 20 goals in 50 appearences for I Crociati since he joined them in 2006. Parma are demanding €5 million for Budan, plus the remaining half of midfielder Davide Matteini’s contract. However, Palermo are only willing to shell out €4.5, plus Matteini.

Serie A Promotion

Lecce have defeated Albinoleffe 1-0 in the first leg of the promotion playoff final. It was an important victory for the southern minnows, who will now get to play the return leg at home with a one goal advantage. Albinoleffe controlled tempo in the first half, but it was Elvis Abruscatto’s goal for Lecce in the 31st minute of the second half that gave the Giallorossi the lead. That one goal proved to be enough and Albinoleffe will have an uphill battle facing them when the return leg is played this Sunday. The winner of this final will join Chievo and Bologna in promotion to Italy’s top flight.

Other News

Milan ace Ricky Kaka is a proud father after his wife gave birth to a baby boy. Kaka was recently unhappy with his club because of their decision to go ahead with knee surgery ahead of the Brazil’s World Cup qualifying matches. Because of his recovery time, he has been omitted from the Brazilian squad for these matches against Paraguay and Argentina. He should, however, return to regular training by the end of the month.

Albinoleffe stunned Brescia 2-1 to reach the Serie B playoff final.  The Bergamo side was trailing on aggregrate before today’s match, making this a must win situation.  Leffe advances with a 2-2 aggregate scoreline due to their better regular season standing.  Their opponent in the final will be southern minnows Lecce, who defeated Pisa 3-1 on aggregate to advance.  The first leg of the final will be in Bergamo on Wednesday, with the return leg being played the following sunday at Lecce.  The winner of the final will join Chievo and Bologna in earning promotion to the top flight.

Bologna are back in Italy’s top flight after beating Pisa 1-0. The lone goal was a Massimo Marazzina penalty kick and it was all they needed to hold on. The last stint in Serie A for the Rossoblu was back in the 2004/05 season. They join Chievo Verona in promotion, with only one spot remaining. The final spot will be determined in the promotion playoff that begins on Wednesday with a round of semifinals. Lecce travels to Pisa, while Brescia hosts Albinoleffe. The following Sunday will be the return leg where Lecce and Albinoleffe will be at home.

We already know that Empoli, Parma, and Livorno will be plummeting to the depths of Serie B next season, but the three clubs that will be taking their place is still up in the air. Only Chievo Verona have secured their top flight status after a 1-1 draw with Grosseto last week. The Flying Donkeys stint in Serie B was a short one, having been relegated from Serie A just last year. With one more week of the Serie B season to go, there are two promotion spots left. The team that finishes 2nd will be automatically promoted, while the 3rd through 6th placed teams will compete in the promotion playoff. 4th through 6th place has already been determined, but the final automatic promotion spot could fall to either Bologna (81 pts) or Lecce (80 pts). Bologna plays promotion contenders Pisa this weekend, while Lecce take on strugglers Vicenza. The team that fails to gain the final promotion spot will enter the playoff with Albinoleffe, Brescia, and Pisa. Albinoleffe’s Serie A hopes recently took a hit when manager Elio Gustinetti quit the club after a series of rows with the club President. It is now up to youth coach Armando Madonna to lead the Lombardian minnows in the playoff.