December 9, 1951: Lazio Napoli 1-0

Larsen strikes on debut

Norwegian midfielder gives Lazio deserved win

Lazio man of the day: Alberto Delfrati

• Other games in December

• Season 1951-52

Source Lazio Wiki

The season so far

Lazio had finished a positive 4th the previous season, under manager Mario Sperone. The Biancocelesti had won both derbies and and beaten Milan away. Top scorer was Norberto Höfling with 11 league goals.

This season the manager was Giuseppe Bigogno. The main additions to the squad were Luigi Fuin (Palermo), Ragnar Nikolay Larsen (Sandaker), Sigvard Löfgren (Helsingborg), plus forward Lelio Antoniotti while leaving were defender Sergio Piacentini (Chinotto Neri), midfielder Flavio Cecconi (Napoli) and forwards, Dionisio Arce (Napoli) and Höfling (Pro Patria).

After a difficult start (3 defeats in first 4 games) the Eagles were having another promising season and were joint 8th with Sampdoria on 12 points. Lazio had won 5, drawn 2 and lost 4. Lazio came from two wins (Legnano at home and Atalanta away both 2-0). There were no derbies this year as Roma had been the first team from the capital to be relegated to Serie B.

Napoli had finished 6th the previous season under Eraldo Monzeglio. The Azzurri had lost 1-3 away to Lazio and drawn 0-0 at home. The top scorer was Amedeo Amedei with 11 league goals.

This season the manager was still Monzeglio. The main novelties in the squad were defender Giulio Castelli (Genoa), Giuliano Comaschi (Crotone, he would stay nine seasons), Manlio Scopigno (Salernitana) and Jenő Vinyei (Pro Patria), midfielder Flavio Cecconi (Lazio) plus forwards István Mike Mayer (Lucchese) and Dionisio Arce (Lazio - on loan).

Leaving were defenders Eto Soldani (Siena), Renato Tiriticco (Stabia) and Luigi Vultaggio (Stabia), midfielders Vittorio Dagianti (Chieti)and Egidio Di Costanzo (Stabia)

There were therefore three Lazio connections in the squad: Cecconi, Arce and former Lazio forward Paolo Todeschini.

So far Napoli had won 6 (including Bologna 4-1 away and Inter 1-0 at home), drawn 1 (Udinese 1-1 away on debut) and lost 4 (including last two). They were currently 7th on 13 points, one above Lazio.

So, only one point dividing them in the table in favour of the Neapolitans but they came from two defeats while Lazio played at home and came from two consecutive wins. A betting man would say Lazio were slight favourites.

The match: Sunday, December 9, 1951, Stadio Torino, Rome

A cloudy day in Rome and the pitch was slightly slippery from previous rain. A crowd of 32,000 was present, bringing 21 million lire into Lazio's coffers (a record for the Stadio Torino).

Lazio had to do without defender Zeffiro Furiassi and forward Aldo Puccinelli while Napoli were missing midfielder Silvio Formentin.

The game followed a clear pattern from the start, Lazio pushing forward and Napoli defending and hoping to strike on the counter.

Lazio attacked constantly but only scored in the 32nd minute. Lelio Antoniotti set up Ragnar Larsen and the Norwegian debutant hit a cross goal shot which surprised Giuseppe Casari, 1-0. The keeper would later claim he had been deceived by a bad bounce.

A few minutes later Lazio scored again but Şükrü Gülesin's skillful effort was disallowed for a dubious offside.

Lazio could have doubled their score but despite good build up work they were imprecise when it came to finishing the move off.

Napoli had a few rare forays but Lazio's defence was solid and Luigi Fuin superb. The man of the match however was Larsen who combined quality and quantity in midfield.

The game was hard but clean. Both sides had a penalty appeal each but referee Berardi judged them both to be more light pushes than trips and gestured to play on.

A deserved win for Lazio who had been the better team. A hard-fought game played with great sportsmanship. Both defences had been excellent but Lazio had managed to get the decisive goal.

Lazio were now 5th, on 14 points with Sampdoria, Novara and SPAL. Napoli were leapfrogged by Lazio and were now 9th on 13 points.

Who played for Lazio

Sentimenti IV, Antonazzi, Sentimenti V, Alzani,  Malacarne, Fuin, Larsen, Flamini, Antoniotti, Löfgren, Şükrü

Manager: Bigogno

Who played for Napoli

Casari, Delfrati, Vinyei, Castelli, Gramaglia, Todeschini, Astorri, Amedei, Mike, Granata, Krieziu

Manager: Monzeglio

Referee: Bernardi

Goal: 31' Larsen

What happened next

Lazio finished 4th again. In the next 26 games the Biancocelesti won 9 (including Juventus 2-0 at home), drew 11 (including Inter and Milan 1-1 away and Milan 1-1 at home) and lost 6 (including Napoli 1-2 away). Another good season for the Romans who only came behind the big three. The top scorer was Gülesin Sukrü with 16 league goals.

Napoli finished 6th. In the remaining games the Azzurri won 11 (including Como 7-1), drew 7 (including Juventus 1-1 away) and lost 8. The top scorer was Mario Astorri with 13 league goals.

Juventus won their 9th league title while Lucchese, Padova and Legnano descended to Serie B.

Let's talk about Alberto Delfrati

Alberto Delfrati was born in Codogno (Lodi-Lombardy), on June 6, 1924.

He started his professional career with Cosenza in 1946. He stayed three seasons playing 64 league games. The Calabresi were initially in Serie B and finished 12th, 10th (relegated) and then 5th in C. His managers were Argentine Atilio Demaría and Hungarian András Kuttik.

In 1949 he signed for Napoli in Serie B. He played for the Partenopei for five seasons and they finished 1st (promoted), 6th twice, 4th and 5th in A. He played 127 league games for the Neapolitan Azzurri. His manager was Eraldo Monzeglio for the whole time.

In 1954-55 he went to Pavia on loan in Serie B. He played 33 league games and the Azzurri finished 18th and were relegated under manager Gipo Poggi.

In 1955 he moved to Ferrara and signed for SPAL in Serie A. He played 73 league games and the Estensi finished 9th twice and 12th. His managers were Fioravante Baldi for one season and Paolo Tabanelli for two. His teammates included Lazio connections; Sigvard Löfgren (1951-55) and Orlando Rozzoni (1959-61, 1962-64, 1965-66).

In 1958 he joined his last club Vigevano and stayed two seasons. The Ducali were in Serie B and finished 19th (relegated) and 17th in C (relegated). A double drop, so not a great way to end his career. He played 67 league games and then retired at 36.

He then went into coaching. He started with Arona (Novara) at amateur level. In 1963-64 he was head coach of Novara in Serie C and finished 6th. He then had a brief spell at Asti TSC in D.

In 1967 he arrived at Lazio. He was involved in the youth sector but was also assistant manager for the first team. In 1967-68 the manager was first Renato Gei and then Bob Lovati and the Biancocelesti finished 11th in Serie B. In 1968-69 the manager was Juan Carlos Lorenzo and Lazio won the league and promotion to Serie A.

Delfrati's coaching career then continued with Casertana in Serie B but he was replaced during the season. The Rossoblu were eventually relegated.

In 1971 he returned to Napoli and was assistant manager for five seasons. He worked with Giuseppe Chiapella (8th and 9th), Luís Vinício (3rd and 2nd, both UEFA qualifications). In the last season Vinicio started and finished the league (5th) but resigned for the final stages of the Coppa Italia in June. Delfrati took over with Rosario Rivellino and managed to win the cup, defeating Verona 4-0 in the final.

In 1976 he was back at Lazio following Vinicio as his assistant. They stayed one full season (5th-UEFA) while in the second they were replaced at the end of March. Lazio eventually finished 10th. They however were in charge when Bruno Giordano, Lionello Manfredonia and Andrea Agostinelli started playing regularly.

Delfrati then went back to Napoli from 1980-82 as assistant to Rino Marchesi (3rd -UEFA and 4th).

In 1982-83 he was assistant to Marchesi at Inter and the Nerazzurri finished 3rd (UEFA).

His last job was with Napoli again from 1983-85 as assistant first to Pietro Santin and then Marchesi. The Azzurri finished 11th and 8th. In the second year they trained the great Diego Armando Maradona.

As a player Delfrati was a reliable right full-back. He played seven seasons in Serie A with 165 appearances.

As a manager he was mainly an assistant especially to Vinicio and Marchesi but he had the satisfaction of winning the Coppa Italia in 1976.

Delfrati died on October 23, 1990, in Naples.

Source

Lazio WIki

Wikipedia