SS Lazio 1900: 2013-2014

Discussion in 'Lazio' started by squadra_azzurri, Jul 27, 2013.

  1. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    New season. New faces. Renewed Ambition.

    Our team this season is much deeper than previous. At the winter break we were in a Champions League qualification spot and later fell out when our key players were getting injured and Europa League took a toll on our team.

    This season our management has held on to our key players and added in more.
    Lucas Biglia, Felipe Anderson, Vinicius, Novaretti and our Vice-Klose has yet to come. Once Libor Kozak is sold, Lotito can start to finalize our striker. Also, the Lazio media seem to considering Ederson to be a newcomer sorta speak as well. His knee is now 100% which it never was and he is absolutely enthusiastic in his interviews about his new season coming up. He has also taken the #10 and has been scoring in preseason matches regularly so far.

    Stefano Mauri has been on trial for match-fixing and is at risk for lengthy ban and the prosecutor wanted Lazio to start the season with -6 points. These allegations have no proof of betting from Stefano Mauri even to this day from the start point a year ago. The prosecutors are saying Mauri had a telephone conversation with a guy that knew a guy that was involved with a bookkeeper. Mauri's defense is that he did not bet on any soccer game, he bet on a Tennis match that was being held in Rome and the bet was taken place before the contact was made with his friend that knew his bookkeeper friend.

    Now the prosecutors seem to be settling on 18 month ban and a fine for Lazio. I really doubt Claudio Lotito will accept this and surely not Mauri. Lotito is someone who fights tooth and nail for justice and will not settle for no penalty given that there is no evidence on Mauri.

    After winning the Coppa Italia Derby Final, Lazio have qualified directly into the group stages of Europa after stealing roma's entry spot. Lotito has always made this tournament a priority setting an example of how other serie a teams should treat it. We will of course take this tournament seriously and compete to the end.
     
  2. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    I have a feeling that 90% of our mercato is already finished. We are not going to sell any important players and now we have many players in every position. The only thing that is missing is the alternative for Klose. We have added to the squad so there is no excuses for not doing better this time around.

    The case against Mauri is complete rubbish. There is no tangible evidence against him and we should not missing sleep over it at all. I expect us the maximum to be a small fine. Any ban or points deduction will get immediently appealed. What a waste of time.

    i hope we buy an established player instead of unknowns all the time. The number nine jersey is free so I hope so.
     
  3. feli10

    feli10 New Member

    Jul 30, 2013
    Club:
    Real Betis
    Hi, I am a follower of Real Betis in Spain, I am interested in knowing what would to this day the ideal team to start the season of Lazio, thank you very much
     
  4. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Welcome Feli,

    Marchetti
    Konko Dias Biava Radu
    Candreva Hernanes Ledesma Lulic
    F. Anderson
    Klose


    There can be many alternatives to the starting lineup. Like replacing F.Anderson with Mauri or Ederson. Or Biava with Cana or Ciani Novaretti etc. Or Ledesma with Biglia. That would be my personal starting 11 today.
     
  5. feli10

    feli10 New Member

    Jul 30, 2013
    Club:
    Real Betis
    Thank you very much!

    How about you go with Konko?
    Here while playing for Sevilla fc was a regular player, you have to play the level lazio?
     
  6. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    hows it going with Konko?

    He is a very technical player who has been a regular also with us at Lazio. Offensively, he plays very well with Antonio Candreva on the right wing. He makes very good passes along his wing to build up a play, rarely gives the ball away, and is an adequate defender. I cannot believe how such a player with a skinny physique never ever loses a physical battle. He is not strong with his head but knows very well how to shield his opponent away from it and ultimately beats them on a footrace to the ball. One problem with Konko is that he seems to get injured often, which has proven to be a huge blow when he is out.

    [​IMG]
     
  7. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Verdict: 6 month ban for Stefano Mauri and a $40,000 to Claudio Lotito.

    Mauri is very very bitter according to his lawyer and agent. The appeal is expected to lower the ban to 3 months and perhaps taking away the fine to Lotito. It is widely believed that Mauri is innocent but since this case dragged on for so long, the courts felt obligated to cover up for any embarrassment that may result on the prosecutor and judges being wrong for so long. Sort of how FIGC admitted Lazio were innocent a couple years after the calciopoli, just to save face at the time. Omar Milanetto who was as "guilty" as Mauri got off with no penalty simply for not having a big of a name as Stefano Mauri.

    We can breath a sigh of relief but I want Mauri with us from to start to finish. We all know we fight for justice and that is what Lotito Mauri will do. Non Mollare Mai.
     
  8. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Expect an appeal. No way that is a fair judgement based on the lack of evidence. If Milanetto got nothing then surely means Mauri should get nothing as well. I never expected a points deduction at all. The entire case is a just one big farce.
     
  9. Rob_420

    Rob_420 Member

    Jun 2, 2006
    Montreal
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    I would agree with this lineup. I prefer Ciani as CB over both Biava and Dias, so we very well could see a change there. I would also rate Biglia over Ledesma and I don't think it will take long for Biglia to claim that spot.

    We definitely have the depth in midfield but again defense and forward depth is worrying. Hopefully one of the youngsters Rozzi or Kozak if he stays provide the spark needed. Floccari continues to play well when given opportunities but he has shown to fade when Klose has been out for a significant stretch.

    We could surprise this season, The same core group of Klose, Hernanes, Candreva, Ledesma, Lulic, Dias, Radu, Biava and Marchetti have been together for several seasons. Other squads like Inter, Milan, Roma and Fio have all had turnover the past few seasons some for the better but they may not gel so quickly.
     
  10. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Ciani blows hot and cold. Some games he can be braindead and other games he is a Gladiator out there. Sounds a bit like Diakite but Ciani has better passes and decisions on an overall scale. Lorik Cana is a player who is used often by Petkovic. He is doing something right in training because he gets played a decent amount. Cana can be surprisingly good or he can be wreckless out there hurting the team. Again depends which Cana shows up, whereas Dias Biava you know they are sound tactical defenders. Also Novaretti has been impressing in preseason so far. If Ciani and Cana can be consistently good, I wouldn't say we lack in D. Just need the consistency in the back. We know Radu and Konko are champs but their injuries are heavy.

    Petkovic is unconvinced by Libor Kozak and rightfully so. In terms of Serie A, he cannot be relied on. Simply not good enough. On the other hand, against other European teams he has proven to be able put the ball IN the net since I've noticed these other teams do not play as tactical as Serie A. That alone is not enough though and if we can sell him and reinvest on a better striker (Eder from Braga or Matavz from PSV) then that can be a much much better solution when Miroslav Klose is out. Also Rozzi and Keita are doing well in training, but its hard to rely on 20 year olds to take you to Champions League. Nevertheless, our Primavera squad are ranked #1 and they are coming off a scudetto championship season.

    We could surprise and I think a strong start would really help us break the barrier. Hopefully Felipe Anderson can make the difference in attack since we have lacked in goals in recent seasons.
     
  11. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Our defence is solid, it is strike force which is the problem. We do not score enough goals and the backups to Klose are unreliable. Remember only in one game last year did we score more then 3 goals. Our midfielders do not score enough goals either. That was plain for all to see in the Panathinaikos game as well. Our defence is solid but our attack is mediocre. It is well behind the likes of Fiorentina, Milan and Napoli. We have only one creative player in the team which is Mauri, all the rest are just do not have the vision to split defences and create plays.
     
  12. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    It looks more likely that this is the formation that Signore Petkovic is going with

    Marchetti
    Konko Biava Dias Radu
    Biglia Ledesma
    Candreva Hernanes Lulic
    Klose

    To me.. this lineup can bang with the best. Thank Lotito for keeping our crown jewels and adding in a couple more significant signings. Biglia is doing great and im sure he will over the course of the season as well. The real force behind our team is the love, passion and human qualities our players display for themselves and towards SS Lazio. I hear other top half table teams talking about being so close with each other, but this team has been through hell to glory with each other. We have suffered and succeeded and our additions have been very humble and captains of former teams. We haven't sold our top players, when Lotito gets enquirers about the top players he says not for sale and slams the door shut and locked. The understanding and unity Lazio has was built by Reja and maintained with Petkovic. A lot of people say we have overachieved, but that's just what happens when you put your sole into the team

    Tactically our defense is very good although are CB's are not even high profile defense. We still have Ciani Novaretti Cana Cavanda who are also very adequate replacements. Not to mention we have an insane goalie behind them who again made some crazy saves from point blank again against crystal palace. The commentator must have went a couple minutes asking and praising the saves that Marchetti was making. It is unreal.

    Next we have Onazi Ederson Gonzalez F.Anderson Vinicius and Mauri in 3 months time who can all step in without bringing down the quality too much. F Anderson is still a gem that has to get polished off during the course of Serie A and also Vinicius has been proving to keep up with the quality of the team throughout training. Still these two new young additions have sprained ankles but should recover at the latest 2nd week into the season.

    Our Klose replacement is still to come. Keita and Rozzi have shown Petkovic some great skill. Rozzi has been doing well burrying his chances and Keita is very good in the danger zone with the ball. Hopefully these two succeed but the vice-Klose is needed. Floccari doesnt seem to have it judging from the friendlies that I've watched this preseason. I think he will fall out of Petkovic's plans but still be a loved player to have with us.

    Avanti Ragazzi. Vivo per la Lazio !
     
    FORZA NAPOLI <3 repped this.
  13. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    We will see where we are after the SuperCoppa Italiana. Personally I think you are being overly enthusiastic. In pre season we have seen that the attack is weak. That was confirmed again against Crystal Palace when we only scored one goal. Marchetti is not going to bail us out everytime. So far we have not won any match convincingly. We need an alternative to Klose immedietely.
     
  14. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    I am just saying Rozzi and Keita are showing good stuff. I understand they cannot take Lazio to the next level today as teenagers, but its important to the players and Lazio that theyre development is not disappointing. Klose scored when he was on and when Floccari came in it was obvious we had not much going on. I am not being overly enthusiastic, this is reality.. we can bang with the best and I did agree we need the vice-Klose.

    You cant base your thoughts on preseason games anyway. We were horrible last preseason and we got off to a strong start. Everybody agreed Petkovic was the first one to go but he has proven otherwise.

    Marchetti is a superb keeper, one of the best in Serie A. No keeper can bail any team out everytime so I dont even know why you said that. If you are playing down Marchetti's contribution to the team then I am shocked.
     
  15. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    I am not basing my thoughts on pre season but on last season as well. Ten of the players you named in your line up played for us last year when we scored low amount of goals as well. The team has added depth but not taken a leap in quality.
     
  16. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy

    Ya and your point is? ... We did very well when everybody was healthy which our strongest 11 are. Don't forget how great we were until Klose got injured. We need a vice-Klose. We cannot burnout a 35 year old striker and ask him to play 45+ games, that is unreasonable and Lotito should help this along before market end. Yes, we do not score a ton of goals but we played very well and disciplined against top teams.
     
  17. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Point is that we are virtually the same team as before. The same underlying problems still remain. We played well against top teams at home not away. We lost against Milan, Napoli, Juventus, Fiorentina, Udinese away. We have a good defence but we must reinforce our attack and improve the goals from midfield if we want to take a step forward. I hope Felipe Anderson can do that.
     
  18. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    We've had that problem for even the two previous seasons prior to the one that just passed and we narrowly missed Champions League in both occasions. Goals can win a game but defense wins ultimately. I agree, to push us over the edge and sneak our way in we need a little more up front and to cover Klose's awesomeness when he's out. I guess I can say I am overly excited about Serie A but rightfully so. Just that emotion when I see our our XI step onto the field is perhaps overwhelming me, its already been too long.
     
  19. Rob_420

    Rob_420 Member

    Jun 2, 2006
    Montreal
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    For some reason we couldn't score on the road netting only 16 goals. In 3 games against Pescara, Chievo and Inter the boys netted 3 goals in each of those games, so the math shows we scored 7 goals in the other 16 road games, that's not acceptable.

    We do need a better replacement to Klose but if he can stay healthy than Floccari can do the job for a short stretch. He struggles when called upon for an 8 game stretch and Kozak did nothing to alleviate the burden in Serie A as well.

    I am optimistic our midifelders can find some goals. Ederson has the quality to score 5-8 range, Felipe Anderson could reach similar targets. Lulic for all the praise for the goal in Coppa Final netted only once in Serie A. Candreva struck 105 shots (39 on target) he may improve on his 6 goal tally with a bit of luck.
     
  20. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    7 goals in the other 16 away games :eek:

    It is unacceptable and having a better preparation and/or a better traveling schedule can hopefully do some magic. I don't see why we can not better that tally this season coming.

    When we play with 5 midfielders and 1 striker then yes our midfielders will have to chip in. But having 5 midfielders and 4 defenders will mean that we will not score as many as we may hope. On the other hand, this is why I do not care about smashing the goal tally charts. Having 10 players responsible to get back and protect means that everything will be tight in the back adding security to our goal and Klose does well to corner and force the oppositions LB RB's to hoof the ball forward during their own open possession which ultimately always ends up back in our control. As long as we can play efficient, our results will continue to come.
     
  21. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    That is a shocking statistic. That has to be one of the worst in the league. Absolutely abysmal.

    Kozak will leave. He is on the market and it is just a case of him finding the right club. We are currently sitting on our hands market wise because nothing is happenning. Have you seen Felipe Anderson play? Is he a goal scorer? Lulic dropped the ball in the League. One goal is unacceptable considering he is a first choice starter. That is way too low. Even defenders manage more. We are going back to a 4231 system judging from preseason. Hopefully that means more men supporting Klose.
     
  22. Rob_420

    Rob_420 Member

    Jun 2, 2006
    Montreal
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    I've only seen Felipe on youtube. We shall see he was playing with Neymar so it is tough to say how good he is when playing with a player of Neymar's talent. Neymar definitely took much of the opposing teams attention. He seems to be more of a playmaker than a goal scorer. We really need a creative player as most of our mids are more direct in their play. The loss of Mauri hurts in this regard he was one of the few that could unlock a defense, though Biglia can do that as well.

    Lulic was much better in the latter parts of the season but was poor early on.
     
  23. Taib

    Taib Member+

    Lazio
    Italy
    Sep 7, 2007
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy

    Agreed. We need more creativity in out midfield. We will have to see how he adapts to the Italian League because the players do not get much space and time on the ball. It does not help that he is injured and is missing preseason. We invested a lot of time and money on him so I hope it works out. Mauri has appealed and hopefully he overturns the ban. He will miss the SuperCoppa though.

    Lulic is not indespensible. We could move Mauri on the left and put Felipe Anderson or Ederson in the middle behind Klose. That could work better.
     
  24. squadra_azzurri

    squadra_azzurri Member+

    Aug 10, 2004
    Toronto
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    #24 squadra_azzurri, Aug 15, 2013
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2013
    In terms of creativity in our midfield, I think Candreva and Lulic are fine for our flanks. Lulic is not as loud as Candreva but Lulic does a very good job with Radu neutralizing any opponents on their wing. They are very sound together whereas Konko and Candreva also have a good partnership on their wing but in a more offensive role. I am not disappointed in creativity with Lulic and Candreva. Candreva creates a lot per game for 1 player and Lulic puts in real quality crosses, on the ground crosses and finds Klose often in the air.

    The central midfield is where we sort of.. run out of ideas. Again Ledesma and Gonzalez were really good protecting the D, as was Brocchi before he went down and now Biglia will bump up the quality and battle beside Ledesma. Hernanes has a more box to box midfield role. He isn't really great at defending or creating a ton of chances, but when he does get a pass through or a shot in it is really effective. He is a good player to switch the ball, hold possession, build play but in terms of grabbing the game by throat and dictating it, I still need to see more. Yes, we are all hoping Felipe Anderson can be the one to just have a deadly impact. I hope he can be like a Javier Pastore sort of player, very technical and dangerous.


    SuperCoppa Italiana coming up against Rubentus. The old lady will be in the Olimpico in a nearly sell out crowd. As of yesterday morning, 52 Thousand Tickets have been sold: 30,000 Lazio have sold and 22,000 Juventus has sold. There is aprox. 3K more to be sold but will open up more areas of the stadium if needed.

    Lazio has sold 18,000 season tickets so far but Lotito wants to beat last season's 20,000 mark. He has stressed for the fans to raise that number, as Lotito has done his due diligence with Lazio this past season (notably Coppa Italia Derby Capitale 2013) and wants the same loyalty and input to the team in return. Beating Juventus this game is estimated for the that number to succeed past 20,000, but obviously not an easy task.




    Also,,, Auguri Signore Petkovic ! SuperCoppa Italiana will be his birthday present !!! Daje Lazio Daje !
     
  25. Rob_420

    Rob_420 Member

    Jun 2, 2006
    Montreal
    Club:
    SS Lazio Roma
    Not much to be said about yesterday's match. We were asleep early in the 2nd half and our former player Lietchsteiner destroyed us of all people. We definitely lacked ideas going forward but the defending was poor too. Hopefully it was just a bad 8 min stretch where they got 3 goals and not a sign of things to come from our D.
     

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