This year’s Panettone never tasted so good after Lazio carried a two-month unbeaten run into Christmas. November 4 was the last time that the Biancocelesti tasted defeat, it meant that the team could endure a well-earned rest ahead of what was to be a gruelling month of fixtures in January.
The Biancocelesti went into the New Year in spectacular fashion, but it was important that the players didn’t get carried away. Facing Cagliari at home last weekend was a recipe for disaster if last year was anything to go by. Previous coach Edy Reja’s Lazio were dealt a 4-0 defeat away at Siena after returning from their last winter break, so it was vital that professionalism be shown by Lazio if they were to keep up with the pace of league leaders Juventus.
While Zdenek Zeman and his Roma squad were enjoying what Disneyland had to offer over Christmas, Petkovic was hard at work gearing up for a testing match against a struggling Cagliari team. The Sardinians had been on a torrid run of late, but took a surprise lead through Marco Sau during the second half. Lazio managed to turn it around though, with Abdoulay Konko equalising late on and Antonio Candreva netted from the spot to win it for Lazio at the death.
What made the match major stepping stone for Lazio and Petkovic, was their ability to see the match through with determination, togetherness and domination.
Domination is something Petkovic has been vying for his team to imply since taking over, losing only once at home this season is because Lazio have finally learnt how to take hold of a match and dictate it. Possesion has been in Lazio’s favour for most of their matches so far, and thanks to the in-form Miroslav Klose, have taken maximum points when doing so.
Sitting in second position in Serie A makes it even more difficult to maintain consistency. With the likes of Napoli, Inter, Fiorentina, and AC Milan all competing with Lazio for Champions League football, it is going to take a strong mentality to maintain that position, something which was evidently missing with Reja’s squad last year. Development under Petkovic is starting to appear on a weekly basis, and it makes you wonder how far he can take Lazio under his guidance.
A generous round of results for Lazio meant that second place was guaranteed for another week. Petkovic then had to quickly re-group his troops in time for the visit of Catania in the quarter-final of the Coppa Italia in midweek.
Lorik Cana came in for the injured Andre Dias, while Sergio Floccari replaced Miroslav Klose in attack. Lazio wanted revenge against Catania for the 4-0 thrashing in Sicily last November. The match ended with a 3-0 win to Lazio, and it was one of the best matches played by the team in a long time. Total domination from Petkovic’s team certainly paid off, and the players deputising did more than enough to gain some notice with solid displays.
Lazio will now face a two-legged tie with Juventus in the semi-final after they defeated Milan in extra-time on Wednesday. The Biancocelesti are back in league action this Sunday, facing Atalanta at the Stadio Olimpico. La Dea will be hoping to return to Bergamo with a victory after a run of bad form, so it will be a great test of maturity from Lazio to overcome Stefano Colantuono’s men.
The win against Cagliari on Saturday meant that Lazio had gathered 39 points entering the half-way mark. Petkovic matched a previous record set by former coach Sven-Göran Eriksson. The last time Lazio gained such a points tally, was the Scudetto winning campaign of 2000/01. It remains to be seen if Juventus can be knocked off their perch, but at this moment in time, Lazio are giving it a good go.
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