Biglia: Like Juventus, Lazio have their Pirlo too
The Argentine has become just as much a talisman for his team as the iconic Pirlo remains at Juventus, and their personal clash could prove crucial when the top-two Serie A sides meet on Saturday evening.
Buenos Aires-born Lucas Biglia has been at the heart of everything good about Lazio this term, and his consistent form integral to an outstanding eight-match winning run stretching back to early February.
The 29-year-old’s stature has grown stratospherically since joining the Biancocelesti from Anderlecht in 2013 — to such a degree that European heavyweights Manchester United and Arsenal have been strongly linked with an interest in his services.
His steeliness when protecting the back-four, coupled with unerringly accurate passing abilities, have catapulted the once-underrated defensive midfielder firmly into the limelight.
Though the Bianconeri linchpin Andrea Pirlo is — quite correctly — heralded as one of the game’s all-time greats, it is the impending duel with his similarly-impressive Lazio counterpart that will prove decisive at the Juventus Stadium.
Pass completion rates of 89 percent (Pirlo) and 88 percent (Biglia) illustrate how closely matched they have been this season, with their number of successful passes per game averaging out at 64 and 59 respectively. Of those, each make 20 backwards passes, whilst advancing two-thirds of the time.
Both are accomplished assist-makers who are supremely confident in possession, while they capably dictate the pace of proceedings from deep-lying positions.
They are forward-thinking players who aim to keep the ball moving in order to set up attacks and are absolutely crucial to the strategies employed by their respective team, both of them acting as the fulcrum of the midfield engine-room.
Few stark differences exist, but those that do include the Argentine’s penchant for physical challenges, in which the stylish Italian international holds little interest.
Biglia’s statistics relating to the amount of tackles won, blocks made and successful interceptions dwarf that of Pirlo almost two-to-one.
On the flip side, there is no doubting Pirlo’s innate capacity to produce that special something with one exquisite pass, flick, or set-piece, which barely a handful of his peers have in their locker.
Aside from livewire forward Felipe Anderson, not one player has produced a higher level of performance in a Lazio shirt throughout this campaign than Biglia, who is almost two years into a five-year contract with the Roman outfit.
That is despite Lazio having enjoyed a fantastic season collectively, in which they have attained a place in the upcoming Coppa Italia final and appear odds-on to achieve Champions League qualification after reaching second place in Serie A.
Should Juventus coach Massimilano Allegri decide against unleashing his trusted maestro into the starting line-up, it may cause major repercussions on the contest’s outcome.
At least with Pirlo on the pitch, it will afford Biglia less opportunities to assume control over midfield affairs, as opposed to battling with the still unconvincing Stefano Sturaro.
Furthermore, the usually excellent Claudio Marchisio would likely be earmarked for a deeper role in the absence of ‘L’Architetto‘ (the Architect) Pirlo, which could play in Biglia’s hands.
Yet another all-action display from Biglia spells trouble for Juventus, whomever Allegri selects, and a ninth successive Lazio win in Serie A cannot be ruled out.
