Lazio were looking to extend their unbeaten run against Atalanta on Sunday afternoon and keep Juventus on their toes as the second half of the season commenced. The Biancocelesti were on an unbeaten run of thirteen matches ahead of La Dea’s visit to the Stadio Olimpico, and questions are now starting to be raised about Lazio’s Scudetto ambitions.
The match ended with yet another victory for Vladmir Petkovic and his team, thanks to a helping hand from Sergio Floccari, and an own goal by Davide Brivio. A resilient Atalanta were keeping the dangerous Hernanes under wraps, therefor restricting Lazio to very little during the first period.
Lazio started to pile on the pressure in the second half, and finally got the break-through thanks to half time substitute Floccari. It seemed the 31 year old controlled the ball with his hand before firing home. Atalanta were incensed at the decision as players rushed to demand an answer from referee Sebastiano Perruzo. Lazio coach Petkovic stated after the match that Floccari’s handball was “involuntary” and should have stood.
After the match, Petkovic was asked about Lazio’s Scudetto challenge, and he said that “Our first half was as if we were fighting relegation, in the second we had more head, more legs and more conviction. If we continue how we played during the second, we can finish the season well and hold this position.”
Petkovic received many plaudits for his tactics on Sunday. Opting to leave out Alvaro Gonzalez meant that the coach switched slightly from the normal 4-1-4-1 formation to a 4-4-1-1 to accommodate both Senad Lulic and Antonio Candreva into the line-up.
An evidently sluggish first half from Lazio prompted the coach to make two changes at the break. Surprising many, Candreva and Lulic departed for the arrival of Lorik Cana and Sergio Floccari. In contrast to recent years it was a significant move for the coach, as previous boss Edy Reja perhaps wouldn’t have dared to make two changes at half time whilst the match was still goalless.
The formation then switched to integrate a two man attack of Floccari with Miroslav Klose, and it didn’t take long for it to start working as Lazio posed more attacking threat. A well worked ‘plan-b’ was implied by the coach at the break, and it won the match for the Aquile.
Picking up maximum points whilst playing badly is a trend that is normally set by Champions, the last few matches haven’t been masterpieces from the Biancocelesti, but it has been enough to get the job done. Lulic and Candreva’s form has stalled as of late, and the coach will need them back to their best soon. Creativity is being relied upon from the centre of the park rather than wing play, therefor proving harder to break teams down.
After Juventus managed just a point away at Parma on Sunday, Lazio’s victory takes them to just three points behind the league leaders. The next month could be huge for Lazio if they can continue their excellent form. A trip to Palermo next weekend, is followed by a home tie against Chievo, certainly matches that Lazio are capable of taking maximum points from.
Lazio seemed to have found a superior balance so far this season. Managing to go full throttle in attack at times has been equally matched by some solid defending to cover counter-attacks. Michael Ciani was as strong as always when deputising for Andre Dias on Sunday, and Giuseppe Biava is having his best season in years for the Biancoblu.
It is also worth noting that Federico Marchetti managed yet another clean sheet to take his season record to nine clean sheets in sixteen Serie A matches. Having such an in-form Goalkeeper on the pitch has been backed up by the impressive return of Stefan Radu, who has made an extraordinary return from injury.
Lazio’s man of the match Sergio Floccari told Lazio Style Channel after the match “I don’t know all the results, but I heard the round favored us. Anyway there is still a long way to go and we must not lose our set. What do I think of Palermo? It will be a difficult game, because I think they have a good team and don’t deserve the position they are in right now. Technically they are good and the atmosphere at the Barbera can embarrass anyone. For now let’s enjoy this moment and tomorrow we will think about the next game.”
Despite doubt still raining on Lazio’s parade from the media as to whether they can maintain enough consistency for a title challenge, the fans are starting to have a little more belief. Sunday made it five straight Serie A wins for Lazio, and it is most definitely the form of a title contender.
Something special is happening in Rome of late, and as the weeks keep passing, Lazio keep on winning. It has taken just two weeks to make up ground on the Bianconeri, the eight point gap two weeks ago has now shrunken to just three. So are the Champions stalling? Or are Lazio emerging? Time will soon tell as to whether Lazio can seriously contend with Juventus, but with the rest of the pack biting at Lazio’s heals, will they fold under pressure themselves?
