 In the debut match for his second tenure, Palermo lost 1–0 to Napoli, suffering the match's lone goal during injury time, but managed to defeat 3–2 third-placed Juventus the following week thanks to a late goal by full back Mattia Cassani, and then winning the Sicilian derby the following week thanks to a free kick by Fabrizio Miccoli.Palermo ended the league in 11th place, their worst result since the "rosanero"'s return to the top-flight in 2004.