figured we could have a league thread... first match at Torino, FSC has it tape delayed at 430 est on Sat. C4's preview: http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sa0708/laz-tor.html Lazio's defense is hurting, but that Torino strike force is probably the worst in Serie A. The danger man is Rosina, his matchup with Zauri is the key imo. I bet we actually see Makinwa up front for a banged up Rocchi with the key CL match on the 28th approaching. Lazio (probable): Ballotta; Behrami, Scaloni, Siviglia, Zauri; Mudingayi, Ledesma, Mutarelli; Mauri; Pandev, Rocchi Torino (probable): Sereni; Comotto, Natali, Di Loreto, Lanna; Rosina, Corini, Grella, Lazetic; Ventola, Bjelanovic
Canadians should be able to watch the first match of the season live, at 12:00 pm EST on Saturday on FSWC, at least according to their online schedule. http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/fsctv/printableschedules The match is also being rerun at 7:00 pm on the same day. I'm not sure if TLN will also show the Lazio game.
Torino picks up an undeserved tie against Lazio and we start off with injuries from diakhite and kolarov. we neeeeeeeed a new keeper. Flashes of brilliance from Meghni when he did play. I noticed Lazio does very well getting it to the attacking midfielder which was del nero but it seems our through balls are juust too long. But when our through balls do go threw, then we are dangerous. Lots of shots was good, especially from Ladesma which is good. Lazio were all over Torino, its unfortunate we tied and players keep getting injured. Good news, cribari is back from injury last week and Lazio do look like a strong team (without a goalie)
well that sucked...the rash of injuries to the defenders is amazing. The GK thing is just embarassing now.... Del Nero is crap, I'm glad we jettisoned Foggia and Jiminez and left this guy as Mauri's backup, another poor move. that said it probably should have ended 3-2 lazio.
bad news is players like mauri and the injured defenders remain out, good news is Samp also played midweek in europe. They are a decent side, I'd take the road draw. It shows how little depth Lazio has right now, with the exception of Mutarelli the rest of the projected starting lineup all played full matches midweek. http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sa0708/sam-laz.html Sampdoria (probable): Castellazzi; Campagnaro, Sala, Lucchini; Zenoni, Palombo, Volpi, Ziegler; Delvecchio, Bellucci, Caracciolo Lazio (probable): Ballotta; De Silvestri, Scaloni, Cribari, Zauri; Mudingayi, Ledesma, Mutarelli, Del Nero; Pandev, Rocchi the match is on FSC in the US.
Cassano named in Sampdorias squad against Lazio. I hope to God he doesnt play, he can a crack ANY line of defence you throw at him. and Lazios defence right now does not need any demoralization. I hope Rocchi keeps his current form even though he is frustrated with Lotito with his contract but not the biancocelesti. Forza Lazio, fight to the death.
0-0 in the end. This was a much improved Sampdoria side who missed a cookie in stoppage time to remain 0-0. I think Rossi wanted to see how a flat 4 line mid would do. Nooot good. we hasd no attacking midfielder and it showed. Manfredini missed an open shot baadly inside the box with noone around though he did have the great ability to get into that position. All in all, a game which didnt show Lazios true colors, wasnt a bad display but was further from a good display
I'd agree and I think a draw was good considering that lineup out there. Rossi said after the match that Meghni still isnt fit otherwise he would have played from the start in Mauri's position behind the strikers. The week off will help...then its v Empoli and the first CL match at Olympiakos...
c4's lineups: Lazio (probable): Ballotta; Behrami, Scaloni, Cribari, Zauri; Mudingayi, Ledesma, Mutarelli; Del Nero; Rocchi, Pandev Empoli (probable): Balli; Raggi, Marzoratti, Adani; Tosto, Buscè, Giacomazzi, Moro, Antonini; Vannucchi; Saudati Mauri seems close to returning, hopefully he can go midweek at Olympiakos. Vannuchi has always given us trouble
well 0-0 with Empoli sucked. I think part of the problem is this 4-3-1-2 that Rossi makes the team run. Ledesma likes to play deep, then you put 2 defensive midfielders next to him...leaving just the one attacking player in this game (Del Nero than Meghni) to help the strikers. It just doesnt create enough. Maybe when Mauri is back and the defense gets healthy so Behrami can go back to RM it will change.
I watched the Empoli game and it did not appear to me that Lazio played with much fire. Someone else watching it said they look "flat."
Flat? More like crap. Empoli match was not even worth watching. I stopped watching after thirty minutes. It was disgusting. There was no creativity whatsoever. It was totally boring.
Lets pick up from here after the CL draw in greece,i pray we have a fit squad and get back our rythm. We should beat atalanta away....no doubt.
The pressure is on for Lazio to jump-start their Serie A campaign in this Stadio Atleti Azzurri d’Italia encounter, but they face an Atalanta side who have made a habit of defying reputations. The departure of Coach Stefano Colantuono doesn’t seem to have upset Atalanta’s progress. The Orobici drew 2-2 with Fiorentina to cement a strong start to the season after a 2-0 win over Parma. The Nerazzurri have no intention of being drawn into the relegation dogfight and have demonstrated that they are still the side that finished eighth last time around. Luigi Del Neri must be enjoying life in the laid-back surroundings of Bergamo and as long as he can get draws in games like this he will remain comfortable on the bench. Gradually the murmurings of disquiet are becoming audible at Lazio. After a poor transfer campaign, an opening-day draw with Torino was following by back-to-back stalemates. A gutsy 1-1 against Greek champions Olympiacos in midweek deserves credit, but the Biancocelesti are lacking last year’s conviction. Boss Delio Rossi returns to the scene of his 2004-05 relegation as Atalanta tactician and will be determined to show the locals how far he has come since that disappointing demotion. The capital club will still see themselves as favourites, but momentum is a powerful force in football and they are worryingly stationary. The history books make daunting reading for the hosts. Atalanta haven’t beaten Lazio since October 1997 and have endured a run of 11 games without a triumph over the Aquile. Del Neri continues to make do without defender Thomas Manfredini, who is banned until November 1 for gambling. Ex-Arezzo star Moris Carrozzieri is suspended, leaving youngster Daniele Capelli to compete with Argentine Maximilliano Pellegrino for his spot. Riccardo Zampagna is likely to start as a lone striker with free-kick king Cristiano Doni playing behind him. Lazio make the trip north without injured trio Fabio Firmani, Mobido Diakhite and ex-Atalanta man Sebastiano Siviglia. Keep an eye on: Riccardo Zampagna (Atalanta) – The veteran hitman scored a superb goal against Fiorentina and committed the rest of his career to the club this week. What better way to celebrate than finding the net here? Last season: Atalanta 0-0 Lazio Form guide: Atalanta (- - D W D) Lazio (- - D D D) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Atalanta (probable): Coppola; Rivalta, Talamonti, Capelli, Bellini; Ferreira Pinto, De Ascentis, Costinha, Langella, Doni; Zampagna Lazio (probable): Muslera; Behrami, Stendardo, Cribari, Zauri; Mudingayi, Ledesma, Mutarelli, Mauri; Pandev, Rocchi
time to get our first win v atalanta this weekend. I'd start makinwa up front if I was Rossi...the other pair seemed tired.
2-1 loss at Atalanta, Zampagna scores in the dying seconds....Stendardo lets a punt from the keeper bounce over his head to allow zampagna the shot.
Lazio-Cagliari Stadio Olimpico -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cagliari can heap more misery on Lazio when the two sides meet at the Stadio Olimpico for the first midweek round of the Serie A season. Delio Rossi’s team have endured a frustrating start to the campaign, as they are yet to win in the League and were beaten by Atalanta at the weekend thanks to a stunning last-gasp strike from Riccardo Zampagna. It’s hard not to feel sorry for the highly-rated tactician, who has had to put up with a ridiculous amount of injuries already this term, while his board let him down in the transfer market. That has left the Biancocelesti short on numbers for their first Champions League campaign in four years, but President Claudio Lotito would argue that it’s quality, not quantity, which makes the difference. Mobido Diakhite, Fabio Firmani and Sebastiano Siviglia are all long-term absentees, but fortunately there are few other worries in the injury department for Lazio. Massimo Mutarelli is likely to once again miss out on the starting XI despite coming off the bench to net what had looked like a point-saving goal for the capital club at the weekend, while the strike pairing of Goran Pandev and Stephen Makinwa are likely to be given another outing as Rossi seems almost certain to name an unchanged team. His opposite number Marco Giampaolo appears to be digging himself out of a hole thanks to some decent early-season performances from his Sardinian outfit, as he was among the bookies’ favourites to be the first Coach axed this term. He owes plenty to a man who was wearing the Biancocelesti’s colours not too long ago, as Pasquale Foggia has been playing like a man possessed. Indeed, his form has been so good that Italy boss Roberto Donadoni called him up for the recent European Championship qualifiers. It seems likely that Giampaolo will follow Rossi’s lead by picking the same players who narrowly lost to Palermo in a game which they dominated for large periods. Skipper Diego Lopez is out of action for at least a month and Joe Bizera is also in the treatment room. The form of Alessandro Matri – scorer of two goals this term – is likely to be enough to ensure fellow young gun Robert Acquafresca remains on the bench. Lazio last beat Cagliari at the Olimpico eight years ago, although they were victorious last term in Sardinia thanks to goals from Emilson Cribari and Rocchi. This isn’t one for the neutrals though, as three of the last four meetings have finished all square, including a dour stalemate around this time last year. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself… Keep an eye on: Pasquale Foggia (Cagliari) – The impressive attacking-midfielder is making a real splash in Sardinia and he’ll be hoping to give the club that still part owns him a first-hand look at what they are missing. Last season: Lazio 0-0 Cagliari Form guide: Lazio (- D D D L) Cagliari (- W L D L) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lazio (probable): Muslera; Behrami, Stendardo, Cribari, Zauri; Mauri, Mudingayi, Ledesma, Manfredini; Pandev, Makinwa Cagliari (probable): Fortin; Ferri, Canini, Bianco, Del Grosso; Foggia, Conti, Parola, D'Agostino; Larrivey, Matri