Nervy win keeps Lazio top
- Dag Jenkins
- May 9, 2024
- 4 min read
Game 32, Serie A
Sunday, May 9, 1999
Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Lazio -Bologna 2-0
A superb Almeyda goal and a late Vieri strike maintain one-point lead on Milan with two games to go
In Serie A so far Lazio had played 31 games and were top of the table with a one-point lead on Milan. Lazio had got off to a sluggish start and in the first ten games won 3 (including Inter 5-3 away), drew 4 (including first 3) and lost 3. The Biancocelesti had then drawn a thrilling derby 3-3 and after that hit top gear. Lazio then won 9 consecutive games (including Juventus 1-0 away) before a 0-0 away draw in Cagliari. Lazio had then continued with six more wins (including Inter 1-0 at home), two draws (including 0-0 draw with Milan at home with a Vieri goal controversially disallowed) but also two bad defeats (derby and Juventus) which cut their lead. Lazio however now came from two wins. The table read Lazio 62, Milan 61, Fiorentina 54.
Lazio were strong favourites today. A win at all costs game against opposition with not a lot to play for.
The match
A hot and sunny day saw about 60,000 spectators gather to push Lazio towards the Scudetto.
Lazio were without Pavel Nedved.
Bologna were missing defenders Giovanni Bia and Massimo Tarantino plus midfielders Carlo Nervo and Giampiero "Gimmy" Maini.
The game was preceded by Lazio legend Beppe Signori going under the Curva Nord to greet his old fans and receive a plaque to thank him for his superb years in Rome.
The game then started with Lazio seemingly tense on this big occasion. It was the visitors who had the first big chance when Klas Ingesson pounced on a loose ball in the area and hammered a left foot which was heading under the crossbar, but Luca Marchegiani pulled off an incredible and instinctive save and tipped it over the bar.
Lazio then scored but it was disallowed. Sinisa Mihajlovic swung in a freekick from the left, Roberto Mancini headed onto the crossbar, the ball bounced back into play and Christian Vieri nodded in. The referee however claimed Mancini was offside but there were huge doubts on his decision.
The game was blocked, Lazio had stage fright and Bologna were almost too relaxed. Lazio only threatened when Attilio Lombardo stuck a foot out on a poor Sergio Conceição shot but the ball went just wide.
Just before the break Bologna were forced to replace an injured Michele Paramatti with former Roma, Massimiliano Cappioli. Halftime came with the score still 0-0 after a dull first 45 minutes.
The second half fortunately brought a Lazio goal early on. It came from an unlikely source, Matias Almeyda who scored his first ever in goal in Serie A. My brother Glyn however, walking up the steps to the Stadium had earlier strangely announced, "Oggi segna Almeyda" (Today Almeyda will score). He was right, in the 50th minute the Argentine picked up the ball about 25 metres out and placed a superb curling shot in the top left-hand corner. Lazio 1 Bologna 0.
The game went back to its slow rhythm which suited Lazio fine. Mihajlovic tried to score directly from a corner but not much else happened.
Then the substitutions started, for Lazio Ivan De La Peña replaced Lombardo in the 66th minute while for Bologna Jonathan Binotto and Igor Simutenkov came on for Eriberto and Signori in the 71st.
The Russian forward soon gave Lazio a huge scare. He beat Paolo Negro in the area and only had Marchegiani to beat from 5-6 metres but his shot towards the top corner came back off the right post.
Lazio then made two more substitutions, in the 79th minute Beppe Favalli came on for Negro and in the 82nd Paul Okon replaced Conceição.
Lazio were still tense although Bologna were not threatening. They were finally liberated from their fears in the 89th minute when they doubled the score. Mancini scooped the ball into the left side of the area where Vieri let off a powerful mid-height left foot which surprised Francesco Antonioli on the front post and went in. Lazio 2 Bologna 0 and full time.
A very important win for Lazio. The Biancocelesti had not played well and were negatively influenced by the enormity of the occasion and the realisation that their dream was so close. It was a fundamental win however as Milan had won too, 2-0 away at Juventus.
With two games to go Lazio were still top with that one-point advantage on the Rossoneri. Next up were Fiorentina v Lazio and Milan v Empoli while a few days after the Florence trip the Biancocelesti also had a European Cup Winners final to play.
Who played for Lazio
Marchegiani, Negro (79' Favalli), Nesta, Mihajlovic, Pancaro, S. Conceição (82' Okon), Stankovic, Almeyda, Lombardo (66' De La Peña), Mancini, Vieri
Manager: Eriksson
Who played for Bologna
Antonioli, Paramatti (44' Cappioli), Lucic, Paganin, Mangone, Bettarini, Eriberto (71' Binotto), Ingesson, Marocchi, Signori (71' Simutenkov), Andersson
Substitutes: Brunner, Sanchez, Kolyvanov
Manager: Mazzone
Referee: Boggi
Goals: 50' Almeyda, 89' Vieri
Sources
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