Good news up front
- Dag Jenkins
- Aug 7, 2023
- 3 min read
Pre Season Friendly
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Stadio Centro Italia, Rieti
Lazio Aris Thessaloniki 2-0
With goals by their two forwards Lazio defeat Aris 2-0
This was Lazio's 10th pre-season friendly; Auronzo 16-0, Union Ripa 8-0, Pievigina 8-0, Lucerne 5-1, Slavia Prague 3-3, Osasuna 0-1, Reggina 2-1, Villarreal 1-3 and Universitatea Cluj 4-1.
Lazio's first competitive game would be a Europa League playoff against Rabotnicki (Macedonia) on August 18 and 25.
The Serie A was supposed to start on August 28 (Lazio v Chievo) but would be put back two weeks to September 9 (Milan v Lazio) due to disputes over TV rights.
Today was Aris Thessaloniki's 8th summer friendly. They had won 3, drawn 1 and lost 3 (including Peñarol 1-2 and Al-Hilal 2-3).
The Greek league would start on August 27.
The match
A crowd of 5,000 gathered at the small Rieti ground, more famous for hosting the prestigious September athletics meeting than football matches.
Lazio were without Federico Marchetti, Giuseppe Biava, Christian Brocchi, Mauro Zarate, Hernanes and Miro Klose but fielded a strong side anyway.
Lazio had played only 24 hours earlier in Fiuggi against Universitatea Cluji so had a completely different eleven on the team sheet.
The game started with a scare for Lazio as a Modibo Diakité mistake allowed Faty a free header but Alvaro Bizzarri was safe.
Lazio then gradually took control of the proceedings. Cristian Ledesma teed up Tommaso Rocchi with a long ball over the defence and the Venetian's shot was blocked with some difficulty by Sifakis.
The goal came in the 22nd minute, another good Ledesma pass, assist by Stefano Mauri and an easy tap-in for Rocchi, 1-0.
The Greeks' reaction was disorganised and ten minutes later Lazio struck again. Javier Garrido took a corner and Djibril Cissé showed impressive elevation and headed in (shades of Karl-Heinz Riedle…), 2-0.
Lazio finished the half on the attack with some neat Rocchi-Cissé combinations which excited the crowd even more. Half time Lazio 2 Aris 0 and only positive news so far.
For the second half the visitors made two changes while Lazio decided to keep the original XI.
Lazio were almost immediately awarded a penalty for a foul on Rocchi. Cissé stepped up but blasted his shot high towards nearby Mount Terminillo.
On the hour mark the friendly got a bit heated and Ledesma and Neto had to be separated by their teammates.
The Greeks continued making more substitutions than Lazio who only made their first two in the 74th minute when Pasquale Foggia and Simone Del Nero came on for Senad Lulic and Rocchi.
The game had more or less said what it had to say and the substitutions plus tiring legs meant the game lost its intensity. The Greeks gained more territorial control but were unable to really threaten Bizzarri. Full time Lazio 2 Aris 0.
A positive training match for Lazio who especially in the first half had looked impressive. The Biancocelesti had shown they had strength in depth fielding two competitive line-ups in 48 hours. Cissé had looked sharp, Mauri already match fit and Lorik Cana proved he could be a useful asset in midfield when necessary.
Next up a last friendly against Real Sociedad in Rome and then it would be time for the Europa League playoff.
Who played for Lazio
Bizzarri, Zauri, Diakité, Dias, Garrido, Cana, Ledesma, Lulic (74' Foggia), Mauri, Cissé (82' Kozak), Rocchi (74' Del Nero)
Manager: Reja
Who played for Aris
Sifakis, Vangjeli, Papazacharias (53' Kotsonis), Lazaridis, Michel, Neto (78' Katidis), Faty, Toja (46' Portilla), Kapetanos (46' Cesarec), Soltani (63' Agtzidis), Castillo (71' Papasterianos)
Manager: Tsiolis
Referee: Rocchi
Goals: 22' Rocchi, 33' Cissé
Sources
Comments