Serie A schedule: Watch Italy's Milan, Roma, Juventus and Napoli in matches on CBS's Paramount+

There are two matchdays scheduled to be played between Thursday and Sunday, but the first Serie A action of the new year could face some real chaos. The league wants to continue to plough ahead with the schedule despite 19 of 20 teams being impacted by COVID and several teams being ordered to quarantine by local health authorities. 

The league is not interested in postponing matches, but Bologna is unable to play its game against leader Inter Milan and it has asked the league to reschedule its next two matches. Local health authorities have also stopped Salernitana, Udinese, and Torino from playing matches. It's unclear what will happen with their matches on Thursday.

Serie A is risking enduring similar scenes as what occurred in the case of Udinese vs. Salernitana before the December holidays when that match was not technically postponed, but it was also not played due to Salernitana not traveling for the match.

The match #UdineseSalernitana was not held due to @OfficialUSS1919 failing to show up#SerieA💎 #WeAreCalcio pic.twitter.com/Ubg1qCRSlq

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) December 21, 2021

MORE: UEFA Champions League group standings & schedules

With Inter Milan potentially out of action until Sunday, AC Milan (2nd, 42 points) could move to within a point on Thursday when the Rossoneri host Jose Mourinho and his AS Roma team (6th, 32 points) that's pushing to get into the Champions League places. Defending champion Inter will have the chance to maintain its spot atop the standings with a weekend home match against Lazio.

If Napoli (3rd, 39 points) can't overcome various absences in the squad, it could see its title hopes quickly fade with a daunting Thursday away match against surging Juventus (5th (34 points) which has its sights set on working its way into the top four spots and the UEFA Champions League berths that come with them.

At the bottom of the table, Spezia (17th, 16 points) is five points clear of the drop zone, but it has a big four days ahead of it. The Aquilotti have a home game against Verona (12th, 24 points) and a Sunday regional derby match against an 18th-placed Genoa (11 points) side which will be desperate for a home win to revive its survival hopes.

MORE: Odds to win 2021-22 Serie A title

How to watch Italian Serie A in the USA

The 2021-22 Italian Serie A season is the first campaign to be carried exclusively by CBS Sports through its CBS Sports Network linear TV channel and the Paramount+ streaming platform. All 380 Serie A matches will be streamed on Paramount+.

The network will also produce pregame and postgame studio shows titled "Calcio e Cappuccino" ("Football and Cappuccino") around select matches.

• Dates: Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021, through Sunday, May 22, 2022
• TV channels (USA): CBS Sports Network (select matches)
• Streaming: Paramount+

For televised matches, CBS Sports Network (CBSSN) is streamed on fuboTV, which offers a free seven-day trial for new users. The channel is also available on major cable, satellite and telco providers, as well as streaming providers YouTubeTV, DirecTV and Hulu.

Serie A schedule: Matchday 20

(Home clubs listed first)

Thursday, Jan. 6

Serie A schedule: Matchday 21

Sunday, Jan. 9