August 25, 2007: Lazio -Torino 2-2
- Dag Jenkins
- Aug 25
- 8 min read
Pandev-Rocchi not enough
On a boiling late afternoon Lazio come from behind but are then held to a draw by Torino
Also on this day:
The season so far
Lazio finished an excellent 3rd the previous season under , despite a three-point handicap due to Calciopoli and qualified for a Champions League preliminary. Lazio's best result was thrashing Roma 3-0. Top scorer was Tommaso Rocchi with 19 goals (16 in league).
This season manager Delio Rossi had been confirmed and there had been no major upheavals to the squad. The main signing, Argentine goalkeeper Juan Pablo Carrizo, would have to remain at River Plate for another year due to bureaucratic problems. Another South-American keeper had been brought in to fill the gap, with Uruguayan Fernando Muslera from Nacional Montevideo. Other new entries were defenders Aleksandar Kolarov (OFK Belgrade) and Lionel Scaloni (Racing Santander), midfielders Simone Del Nero (Brescia), Mourad Meghni (Bologna). Considering Lazio would hopefully play Champions League football the fans were not happy.
Lazio had obviously lost some players too: sadly, goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi was retiring after a fantastic career, fellow keeper Matteo Sereni (Torino), midfielders Pasquale Foggia (Cagliari - on loan) and Luís Jimenez (Ternana - end of loan) and striker Simone Inzaghi (Atalanta - on loan).
The fans thought Lazio had not improved the team and not taken advantage of the Champions League opportunity to strengthen the squad.
Lazio had already played the Champions League preliminary round home leg against Dinamo Bucharest, drawing 1-1. The return leg would be on August 28.
Torino had finished 16th the previous season. For the first 25 games the manager was Alberto Zaccheroni, then he was replaced by Gianni De Biasi. The Granata lost 0-4 at home to Lazio and 0-2 away. The Torinesi only avoided relegation by one point. The top scorer was Alessandro Rosina with 12 goals (9 in A).
This season the manager was Walter Novellino. The main new players were: goalkeeper Matteo Sereni (Lazio), defenders Paolo Dellafiore (Palermo - on loan), Salvatore Lanna (Chievo), Marco Motta (Udinese - on loan), Cesare Natali (Udinese), Matteo Rubin (Cittadella), midfielders Eugenio Corini (Palermo), Tommaso Vailatti (Vicenza - back from loan), Vincenzo Grella (Parma), Paolo Zanetti (Ascoli) plus forwards Saša Bjelanovic (Ascoli), David Di Michele (Palermo), Álvaro Recoba (Inter - on loan) and Nicola Ventola (Atalanta).
Leaving Toro were: goalkeepers Christian Abbiati (Atlético Madrid - end of loan from Milan) and Massimo Taibi (Ascoli), defenders Oscar Brevi (Venezia), Gabriele Cioffi (Ascoli), Luigi Martinelli (Verona), Giuseppe Pancaro (retiring), midfielders Andrea Ardito (Lecce), Diego De Ascentis (Atalanta), Fabio Gallo (Novara) plus forwards Elvis Abbruscato (Lecce) and Roberto Muzzi (Padova).
A lot of changes for Torino, hoping not to struggle as much as the previous season.
Considering recent history Lazio were favourites but there was also the risk the Biancocelesti could have the important upcoming Champions League game in the back of their minds.
The match: Saturday, August 25, 2007, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A Saturday 6 p.m. kick-off and it was a sweltering afternoon with a temperature of 42 degrees. There was not a big crowd, about 25,000.
Lazio were without defender Sebastiano Siviglia plus midfielders Valon Behrami and Stefano Mauri.
Torino played with eight of their new signings but had absences in defenders Paolo Dellafiore and Marco Motta, midfielder Nikola Lazetić plus forwards Alvaro Recoba, Roberto Stellone and Davide Di Michele.
Lazio were well on top in the first ten minutes and in the 8th Matteo Sereni was called into action on a dangerous Tommaso Rocchi header.
Torino however weathered the brief early storm and reorganised. In the 19th minute, following a Luciani Zauri mistake, Simone Barone wasted a good chance.
In the 22nd minute Toro were forced into their first substitution as Vincenzo Grella went off with a head injury and on came Paolo Zanetti.
In the 28th minute Lazio threatened again with a Simone Del Nero low cross goal effort but Sereni stretched out and saved.
In the 32nd minute Lazio too suffered an injury as Aleksandar Kolarov limped off with a muscular strain and Lionel Scaloni took his place.
The future Argentina manager had not even warmed up and in the 34th minute he gifted the ball to Alessandro Rosina who then beautifully chipped Marco Ballotta from the edge of the box to give the Granata the lead, 0-1.
Lazio were then unlucky to lose another defender to injury, Modibo Diakitè in the 41st minute, but this time it was more serious and a suspected broken shinbone. Emílson Cribari raced on to play in central defence.
A minute later Sereni made his best save so far as he denied a powerful Cristian Ledesma effort. Half time Lazio 0 Torino 1.
A slightly flattering score line for the visitors but Sereni had been excellent.
The second half saw Lazio start strongly as they pushed forward. Goran Pandev was particularly lively and in the 53rd minute scored a perfectly regular goal but Griselli the linesman inexplicably had his flag up.
In the 56th minute however the Macedonian got the equaliser. Rocchi started the move, the ball reached Gaby Mudingayi who attempted something between a shot and a cross but it was deflected, it reached Pandev in the heart of the area and his left foot beat Sereni, 1-1.
In the 59th minute Toro took off Saša Bjelanovic and put on Tommaso Vailatti.
Lazio were now on a high and insisted. In the 61st minute Rocchi put the Biancocelesti in front with a low, precise strike into the right hand corner from just outside the area, 2-1.
At this point the Granata took off Cesare Natali and threw on Matteo Rubin.
Torino then scored with a Vailatti header but the referee had already blown for a push by Nicola Ventola. Lazio however had not learned their lesson and in the 68th minute left Vailatti completely unmarked in the box to head past Ballotta, 2-2.
Lazio tried adding inventiveness and fresh legs by fielding Mourad Meghni for Del Nero from the 71st minute.
Lazio attacked but the heat and lack of match fitness took their toll and they were never dangerous. Even the extra man in the last six minutes, for a second yellow for Gianluca Comotto, could give them the extra gear necessary to get a winner. Final score Lazio 2 Torino 2.
A disappointing result for Lazio who would have deserved the win. They had 13 shots to 4 and a goal unjustly disallowed but ultimately defensive distractions had cost them. In the last twenty minutes or so the uncomfortable heat had then prevented either team from giving their best.
Next up was the crucial trip to Bucharest.
Who played for Lazio
Ballotta, De Silvestri, Diakité (41' Cribari), Zauri, Kolarov (32' Scaloni), Mudingayi, Ledesma, Mutarelli, Del Nero (71' Meghni), Rocchi, Pandev
Substitutes: Berni, Firmani, Manfredini, Makinwa
Manager: D. Rossi
Who played for Torino
Sereni, Comotto, Natali (62' Rubin), Di Loreto, Barone, Corini, Grella (22' Zanetti), Rosina, Bjelanovic (59' Vailatti), Ventola
Substitutes: Fontana, Ogbonna, Bottone, Oguro
Manager: Novellino
Referee: Celi
Goals: 34' Rosina, 56' Pandev, 61' Rocchi, 68' Vailatti
Red Card: 84' Comotto
What happened next
Lazio finished 12th in Serie A. The Biancocelesti then won 11, drew 12 and lost 14. The highlight was winning the derby 3-2 with a 92nd minute Behrami winner. Top scorers were Goran Pandev and Tommaso Rocchi with 19 goals (both 14 in A).
Lazio were successful in getting into the Champions League as they then defeated Dinamo Bucharest 3-1 away. They were then eliminated in the group phase after 1 win (Werder Bremen 2-1 at home), 2 draws (Olympiakos 1-1 away and Real Madrid 2-2 at home)) and 3 defeats (Werder Bremen 1-2 and Real Madrid 1-3 away and Olympiakos 1-2 at home).
In the Coppa Italia the Biancocelesti reached the semi-finals but were beaten 0-2 on aggregate by Inter. Lazio had previously beaten Napoli 3-2 and Fiorentina 4-2, both on aggregate.
Torino finished 15th (four points from relegation), so not a great improvement. In mid-April the Granata sacked Novellino and brought back Gianni De Biasi. In the end, after today, they won 8, drew 15 (including Lazio 0-0 at home and a derby) and lost 14 (including the other derby 0-1). The top scorer was Alessandro Rosina again with 9 goals (8 in A).
In the Coppa Italia Toronto reached the last 16 but lost to Roma 3-5 on aggregate.
The Serie A was won by Inter while Serie B awaited Livorno, Parma and Empoli.
Let's talk about Goran Pandev
Goran Pandev was one of the most interesting players in the early years of Claudio Lotito’s presidency.
Born in Strumica, North Macedonia, on July 27, 1983, Pandev spent his early football career in the local FK Belasica until at 18 he joined Inter. In 2001-2002 he won the Torneo di Viareggio and the Primavera Championship. The next year he was loaned to Spezia in Serie C1 and in the following season he played for Ancona in Serie A.
Pandev was jointly owned by Udinese and Inter at this point, and the Milanese team gave Lazio their share as partial payment in the Dejan Stankovic deal. It took him a year to become a regular player in the first 11 and under Delio Rossi he became Tommaso Rocchi’s ideal attacking partner. Together they became one of the best scoring duos in Serie A. He reached double figures for four consecutive years showing a constant improvement.
With Lazio he won the Coppa Italia in 2008 and was top scorer for that year’s competition. This was when the problems started.
Lazio had spent quite a lot of money for their then standards to keep him, but he refused to renew his contract. In the meantime he claimed he was injured. He really wanted to go back to Inter and he pushed Lotito for a sale. Big mistake, never try to put Lotito in a corner.
The Lazio President threatened to leave him in the stands until the expiry of the contract and Pandev took Lazio to court. He won, joined Inter (surprise, surprise) as a free agent, and was one of the protagonists of Inter’s Triplete (Champions League, Scudetto and Coppa Italia).
He played one further year at Inter, and scored in the final of the 2010 World Fifa Club World Cup (the former Intercontinental Cup), before joining Napoli, first on loan for a year and then definitively, winning the Coppa Italia twice. In 2014-2015 he was sold to Galatasaray where he won the league. He stayed in Turkey for just a year before joining Genoa. He played in Liguria for five and a half years before joining Parma in January 2022 in Serie B.
After Lazio he was less prolific but he continued to be a charismatic player for all of his clubs. He played 69 games for Inter with 8 goals, 124 games for Napoli with 22 goals, 17 games for Galatasaray with 7 goals, 187 games for Genoa with 32 goals and 11 games for Parma with 1 goal.
In September 2022 he announced that the 2022-23 season would be his last.
He played 191 games for Lazio (159 in Serie A, 18 in Coppa Italia, 4 in Uefa Cup, 3 in Intertoto and 7 in Champions League) and scored 64 goals (48 in Serie A, 10 in Coppa Italia, 5 in Champions League and 1 in Uefa Cup).
He is considered a legend in North Macedonia and has played 122 times for his national team with 38 goals. He scored the first North Macedonia goal ever in a European Championship in 2021.
Pandev is unfortunately among the most hated former players due to the way he left. The Curva Nord in particular have booed him ever since and he has done nothing to make peace. It also does not help that he kept scoring against us. For the average fan however he will bring fond memories of his stay in the capital.
Lazio Career
Sources
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