Larsen strikes on debut

Dag Jenkins
Dec 9, 2022
2 min read

Season 1951-52

Game 12, Serie A

Sunday, December 9, 1951

Stadio Torino, Rome

Lazio Napoli 1-0

Norwegian midfielder gives Lazio deserved win

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.

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

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