December 2, 1990: Lazio Roma 1-1
- Simon Basten
- 20 hours ago
- 11 min read
Lazio dominate but derby ends in draw
The Biancocelesti played a great game but were unable to go beyond a draw in the derby
The season so far
Lazio, tired of Mr. 0-0, Giuseppe Materazzi, were becoming ambitious and as a consequence needed a manager who could lead them to a European Cup participation. Dino Zoff, who had just been dropped by Juventus despite winning both the UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia, was the chosen man.
A change in mentality was needed to accompany the new manager so in came Karl-Heinz Riedle, German centre-forward who had just won the world cup, Armando Madonna, Sergio Domini and Roberto Bacci among others. Lazio said goodbye to Paolo Di Canio and Amarildo.
After ten games Lazio were seventh. They had only won two games (Bologna at home and Cagliari away) and had drawn seven times. Not enough wins to be able to make a serious bid to get into Europe but they were still just four points off leaders Sampdoria and Inter.
The match: Sunday, December 2, 1990, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Lazio started well and Raffaele Sergio shaved the post with a shot in the 5th minute. Six minutes later it was Gabriele Pin with a shot that was very close to the target. Roma had a chance in the 21st minute, after a one-two with Manuel Gerolin, Fabrizio Di Mauro found himself in front of Valerio Fiori who managed to come out of his goal in time, then Sergio cleared. In the 25th minute Karl-Heinz Riedle tried a shot from outside the box, Giuseppe Zinetti parried into corner. Shortly after a mistimed cross from Stefano Desideri almost surprised Fiori and from then on it was all Lazio.
Zinetti was marvellous on a Ruben Sosa free kick but could do nothing in the 38th minute on a fantastic free kick by Roberto Soldà but the ball hit the woodwork. Then Sergio went close to the target and a Sergio Domini header was saved by Zinetti. Towards the end of the first half Roma came back into the game with a sitter wasted by Fausto Salsano in the 41st minute. Four minutes later the Giallorossi scored. Gerolin to Thomas Berthold on the right, cross in the middle, Angelo Gregucci anticipated Desideri but the ball went up in the air and the Roma midfielder had an open goal chance but with his back to the goal. He tried a bicycle kick which would have gone into the net had Soldà not parried it with an arm. Penalty that Rudi Voeller had no problem in netting.
Lazio came back on for the second half with fury and equalised almost immediately. In the 55th minute Riedle tried a shot from inside the box that was saved by Zinetti, Armando Madonna managed to get to the ball on the other side and crossed back into the box, Riedle anticipated Aldair and headed further to Ruben Sosa who with another header gave the Biancocelesti the deserved equaliser.
Both teams at this point eased the pressure. Lazio continued to dominate but were not dangerous, Roma were all Voeller, who a few times gave Fiori some work to do.
The Giallorossi were content with the draw, Dino Zoff a little less.
Who played for Lazio
Fiori, Bergodi, Sergio, Pin, Gregucci, Soldà, Madonna (73’ Troglio), Sclosa, Riedle, Domini, Sosa (84’ Saurini)
Substitutes: Orsi, Lampugnani, Bacci
Manager: Zoff
Who played for Roma
Zinetti, Tempestilli, Carboni, Berthold, Aldair, Comi, Desideri, Di Mauro, Voller, Salsano (62' Muzzi), Gerolin (82' Piacentini)
Substitutes: Cervone, Pellegrini, Conti
Manager: Bianchi
Referee: Lo Bello
Goals: 45’ Voeller (pen), 55’ Sosa
What happened next
Zoff was unable to introduce a winning mentality and in the first half of the season they drew 13 times in 17 games!!!! Almost on the verge of ridiculousness.
Lazio were also knocked out of Coppa Italia early, losing to Serie B team Modena.
The problem was that Domini and Madonna were not playing up to their previous standards. The former was considered to be an excellent playmaker and had shown a lot of potential in his previous club Cesena. But with Lazio it was a completely different story. He had the amazing ability of sending long pas atses in the only parts of the pitch without Lazio players. Madonna should have taken Di Canio's place. At Atalanta he was very highly considered but did not settle in at Lazio and was more of a liability than an asset.
It took Zoff the whole of the first half of the season to replace Madonna with Roberto Bacci on a permanent basis and a few more games to put Pedro Troglio in Domini's place. Things improved, less draws and a few more wins. Lazio even beat Juventus 1-0. But hopes of a UEFA Cup qualification ended with a loss in Milan against Inter in the penultimate game.
Lazio drew 19 times in the 1990-91 season, this sole fact was enough to understand that a lot more had to be done to the squad to be able to have any type of ambition.
Fiori and Sergio were the players with the most appearances (36) and Ruben Sosa the leading goal scorer (12).
What happened in Serie A 1990-91
The previous season saw Napoli win their second scudetto. At the end of the first half of the campionato the Partenopei were leaders with 25 points followed by Inter on 23 and Sampdoria on 22 with Roma. But in the second part of the season Milan started to move up and joined Napoli in the 24th game after beating them 3-0 at home. Two matches later they took a solitary lead and with five games to the end they had a one-point advantage over Napoli and four more than Sampdoria, Juventus and Inter. In the 31st game the Rossoneri drew at Bologna and Napoli were awarded a 2-0 victory at Bergamo after Alemao had been hit by a coin. In the penultimate match Milan collapsed at Verona (just like in 1973), Napoli won at Bologna so they needed just one point in their last game at home against Lazio. They won that match too and the scudetto was theirs. Milan at least had the consolation prize of winning the European Cup beating Benfica in the final in Vienna.
In the summer transfer window Juventus changed everything, not renewing Dino Zoff’s contract and calling Gigi Maifredi who had performed miracles with Bologna. They also signed Thomas Hassler, Paolo Di Canio and Roberto Baggio. The other main clubs concentrated more on adding depth to their squads than making substantial changes to their first eleven.
There were a few changes in managers: Ottavio Bianchi went to Roma, Dino Zoff to Lazio and Sebastiao Lazaroni, former Brazil head coach, went to Fiorentina.
Favourites for the scudetto were obviously Napoli, Milan and Juventus with possible outsiders Sampdoria.
September
The first four games of the season saw Napoli in great difficulty having lost at home to Cagliari and away to Parma, but it was still early stages. They had however thrashed Juventus 5-1 in the Supercoppa final.
In the European Cup Napoli won their first-round leg 3-0 against Ujpest Dozsa. Milan, as holders, went directly to the second. In the Cup Winners Cup, Sampdoria lost the first leg 1-0 at Kaiserslautern whilst Juventus won 2-0 away to Sliven. In the UEFA Cup first-round leg Roma beat Benfica 1-0, Atalanta drew 0-0 at home with Dinamo Zagreb, Inter lost 2-1 away to Rapid Wien and Bologna won 1-0 at Zaglebie Lubin.
In Coppa Italia, after the best 16 Serie A teams joined in the second round, the only top tier club eliminated were Lazio, eliminated 3-1 by Modena.
Milan 7, Inter 6, Sampdoria 6, Pisa 5, Atalanta 5, Juventus 5, Genoa 4, Roma 4, Parma 4, Lecce 4, Torino 3, Napoli 3, Lazio 3, Bari 3, Fiorentina 3, Cagliari 3, Bologna 2, Cesena 2
October
Napoli and Milan drew but lost at home with Sampdoria who went top followed by Juve who smashed Inter 4-2.
In the second leg of the first round of the European Cup Napoli beat Ujpest Dozsa 2-0 and proceeded to the next phase in which they drew in the first leg 0-0 at home with Spartak Moscow. Milan were also blocked by a goalless draw at home against Bruges. Difficult return games for the Italians.
In the Cup Winners Cup both Sampdoria, after winning the second leg 2-0 against Kaiserslautern, and Juventus (8-1 on aggregate vs Sliven) proceeded to the second round. In the first leg of the second round Sampdoria won 1-0 away with Olympiacos, and Juve 4-0 away vs Austria Wien.
In the UEFA Cup Roma also won the second leg 1-0 against Benfica, Atalanta drew away 1-1 with Dinamo Zagreb and went through thanks to the away goal, Inter beat Rapid Wien 3-1 in extra time and Bologna won at home 1-0 against Zaglebie Lubin. They all qualified for the second round where in the first leg Inter lost 2-0 away to Aston Villa, Atalanta won 1-0 away to Fenerbahçe, Bologna lost 3-1 away to Heart of Midlothian and Roma drew 1-1 in Valencia.
Sampdoria 11, Juventus 10, Milan 10, Inter 9, Parma 9, Torino 8, Cesena 7, Lazio 7, Napoli 7, Pisa 7, Atalanta 7, Roma 6, Bari 6, Genoa 6, Fiorentina 5, Lecce 5, Bologna 3, Cagliari 3
November
In November Juventus demolished Roma 5-0 and Samp won 4-1 in Naples. Inter won the derby, beat Napoli and joined Samp at the top of the table. Below, Bologna and Cagliari needed to get going.
The tough beginning of the season for the Partenopei continued as they were eliminated in the European Cup by Lokomotiv Moscow on penalties. Milan managed to reach the quarterfinals winning in Bruges 1-0. Sampdoria and Juventus too reached the quarterfinals of the Cup Winners Cup after eliminating Olympiacos (4-1 on aggregate) and Austria Wien (8-0).
Inter proceeded to the third round of the UEFA Cup after overcoming the 2-0 deficit in the first leg with Aston Villa by winning 3-0, as did Atalanta (4-1 at home to Fenerbahçe), Bologna (3-0 against Heart of Midlothian) and Roma (2-1 vs Valencia). In the first leg of the third round Atalanta drew 1-1 away with Koln, Roma and Inter crushed Bordeaux (5-0) and Partizan (3-0). Bologna lost 3-0 away to Admira Wacker.
In Coppa Italia, Napoli, Bologna, Sampdoria, Torino (vs Inter), Juventus, Roma, Bari (vs Atalanta) and Milan proceeded to the quarter finals.
Sampdoria 15, Inter 15, Juventus 14, Parma 13, Milan 13, Torino 12, Lazio 11, Roma 10, Genoa 10, Atalanta 10, Bari 9, Fiorentina 8, Cesena 8, Napoli 8, Lecce 8, Pisa 7, Bologna 5, Cagliari 4
December
The Rome derby ended in a draw as did the Turin one. Sampdoria fell back a little bit but in the last game of the year beat Inter 3-1 and joined the Nerazzurri at the top. Milan were one point behind after beating Juve. Bit of a gap behind between the clubs on 12 points and Cesena, Bologna and Cagliari.
Atalanta, Roma, Bologna and Inter qualified for the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup. The Bergamaschi beat Koln 1-0 at home, Roma won in Bordeaux 2-0 and Inter drew with Partizan 1-1. Bologna managed to overcome the 3-0 deficit on the first leg by taking Admira Wacker to a penalty shootout which they won 6-5.
Sampdoria 19, Inter 19, Milan 18, Juventus 18, Parma 17, Genoa 15, Torino 14, Lazio 14, Napoli 14, Roma 13, Bari 13, Atalanta 13, Fiorentina 12, Pisa 12, Lecce 12, Cesena 9, Bologna 8, Cagliari 8
January
Napoli’s woes continued as they lost to Juventus, Samp were ousted from the top after a surprise defeat at home against Torino followed by a loss at Lecce. Inter took advantage of the situation and reached the top of the table, followed by Juve, despite a home defeat against Genoa. Parma were doing very well and beat Milan only to then collapse 5-0 against the Bianconeri. Five teams within three points, any of them could win the scudetto. Behind, Cesena already had one foot in Serie B and Cagliari almost.
Inter 25, Juventus 24, Sampdoria 24, Milan 24, Parma 22, Genoa 20, Bari 19, Torino 19, Lazio 19, Fiorentina 17, Roma 16, Napoli 16, Lecce 16, Atalanta 15, Pisa 15, Bologna 13, Cagliari 11, Cesena 9
February
Sampdoria beat Juventus at home and took back a solitary lead after Inter drew two away games. Juventus fell back a bit after a goalless draw at home against Lecce.
In the Coppa Italia Napoli eliminated Bologna (3-2 on aggregate), Sampdoria beat Torino on penalties, Roma crushed Juventus 3-1 on aggregate and Milan had the better of Bari (1-0).
Sampdoria 32, Inter 31, Milan 30, Juventus 28, Parma 25, Genoa 24, Lazio 24, Torino 23, Roma 23, Napoli 22, Bari 21, Fiorentina 20, Atalanta 19, Lecce 18, Pisa 17, Bologna 14, Cagliari 14, Cesena 11
March
Inter lost the derby and Sampdoria crushed Napoli giving the Doriani a three-point lead. In Genoa, news came that Diego Maradona had failed an antidoping test the previous week after the home match against Bari. They found traces of cocaine. The game against Samp would be his last in Italy. Juventus lost against Lazio and Inter but picked up towards the end of the month though no longer in contention for the scudetto which was now a three-team affair: Sampdoria, Inter and Milan. Below Cesena tried a comeback and were now closer to the clubs just above them while Bologna could already be considered relegated.
Milan were eliminated in the quarter finals of the European Cup. They were beaten 4-1 by Olympique Marseille on aggregate. The team's abandonment of the field towards the end of the match cost the Rossoneri a 12-month ban from European games. In the Cup Winners Cup, Sampdoria were eliminated by Legia Warsaw 3-2 on aggregate whilst Juventus qualified for the semis with a 6-1 win on aggregate against RFC Liège.
In the UEFA Cup, Roma and Inter qualified for the semi-finals. The Giallorossi eliminated Anderlecht 6-2 on aggregate and the Nerazzurri won 2-0 against Atalanta. Bologna were eliminated by Sporting Lisbon 3-1 on aggregate.
In the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals, Napoli beat Sampdoria 1-0, Milan and Roma drew 0-0.
Sampdoria 40, Inter 37, Milan 36, Juventus 33, Genoa 31, Torino 29, Lazio 29, Parma 29, Roma 28, Atalanta 28, Napoli 26, Bari 24, Fiorentina 23, Lecce 22, Cagliari 20, Pisa 19, Cesena 17, Bologna 15
April
Inter had managed to reduce the gap with Sampdoria to two points but a draw in Florence and a Doria win against Bari re-established the three-point lead. Juve collapsed and were now in a group with Torino, Genoa and Parma. Defeat in the Turin derby had been a hard blow. The Rome derby ended 1-1.
Juventus were eliminated by Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate in the Cup Winners Cup semi-final. After having lost the first leg 3-1 in Spain, they only managed to win 1-0 in Turin.
The UEFA Cup final would be an Italian affair. Roma eliminated Brondby 2-1 on aggregate and Inter beat Sporting Lisbon 2-0.
Roma and Sampdoria qualified for the Coppa Italia final. Samp overcame the 1-0 deficit of the first leg and beat Napoli 2-0 whereas Roma beat Milan 1-0.
Sampdoria 45, Inter 42, Milan 41, Juventus 34, Torino 34, Genoa 34, Parma 34, Atalanta 31, Napoli 31, Roma 30, Lazio 30, Fiorentina 27, Bari 25, Cagliari 24, Lecce 22, Pisa 20, Cesena 19, Bologna 17
May
In the big match between Inter and Sampdoria which could have reopened the scudetto race, Doria closed the issue by winning 2-0. The Nerazzurri were overtaken by Milan who won 3-0 against Juventus. The scudetto was conquered in the penultimate game with a 3-0 win against Lecce.
The UEFA Cup race, with Milan disqualified and Inter already with a spot, was between Genoa, Juventus, Torino, Parma and Napoli for the other three places. With one game to the end of the season Genoa were on 38 points, Juventus, Torino and Parma on 37, Napoli 35. Final games: Genoa-Juve, Torino-Atalanta, Milan-Parma and Napoli-Bologna. Genoa beat Juventus hence qualified together with Torino and Parma who drew. Juve were out of Europe for the first time in 28 years.
For the relegation battle with three games to go Bologna were last and relegated on 18 points, Cesena on 19 and Pisa on 20 almost, Lecce on 23, Cagliari 25 and Bari 26. But in the penultimate match of the season the race was over: Lecce lost in Genoa, Bari beat Milan and Cagliari won in Bologna.
Inter won the UEFA Cup. They beat Roma 2-0 in the first leg and lost 1-0 in the second. Roma however won the Coppa Italia beating Sampdoria 4-2 on aggregate.
As a consequence, Sampdoria would be playing the European Cup, Roma the Cup Winners Cup, Inter, Genoa, Torino and Parma the UEFA Cup.
Lecce, Pisa, Cesena and Bologna were relegated. They would be replaced by Foggia, Verona, Cremonese and Ascoli.
Top Serie A scorer: Gianluca Vialli with 19 goals.
Final table: Sampdoria 51, Milan 46, Inter 46, Genoa 40, Torino 38, Parma 38, Juventus 37, Napoli 37, Roma 36, Atalanta 35, Lazio 35, Fiorentina 31, Bari 29, Cagliari 29, Lecce 25, Pisa 22, Cesena 19, Bologna 18
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