Another dismal performance
Updated: 3 days ago
Game 16, Serie A
Wednesday, January 4, 2023
Lecce, Stadio Del Mare
Lecce Lazio 2-1
After a good first 30 minutes Lazio collapse at Lecce
The teams
Maurizio Sarri had left Luis Alberto and Mario Gila in Rome injured, and had decided to leave Felipe Anderson on the bench for the first time this season, as far as the campionato was concerned. Toma Basic was chosen over Matias Vecino, Danilo Cataldi was fully recovered as was Ciro Immobile.
Lecce were very eager to make a good start to the season, confirmed by the record number of spectators that season at Via del Mare.
The match
Lecce started very aggressively but Lazio easily controlled the match. In the 6th minute Manuel Lazzari did his usual sprint on the right but was fouled from behind by Lameck Banda who was booked. The consequent free kick saw Cataldi put a perfect cross in the box for Nicolò Casale. His header was miraculously saved by Wladimiro Falcone.
In the 14th minute Lazio scored. Casale just over the halfway line had seen Immobile’s classic movement, ball to him. King Ciro just inside the box on the far right volleyed it towards the far post and it was 1-0 for Lazio.
Lazio were in complete control. In the 17th minute the Biancocelesti counterattacked, Sergej Milinkovi-Savic passed the ball to Immobile who tried an acrobatic volley but the ball was just slightly off target.
In the 24th minute, Lazzari did a box to box on the right, once he was near the Lecce penalty area he crossed for Mattia Zaccagni on the left. The Lazio forward lost a second to switch foot and his shot was parried by a Lecce defender, ball to Basic outside the box but central, his shot though was too high.
Lazio’s game ended here. Lecce towards the end of the first half, sensing that Lazio were mentally out of the match, became increasingly aggressive but they were unable to create any real chances.
The second half was another story. Federico Di Francesco substituted Banda and in the 47th minute Ivan Provedel made his first save when the Lecce forward shot from outside the box.
Lazio were completely out of the game and they could not make two passes in a row without losing the ball. As a consequence in the 57th minute, Lecce equalised. There was a gap in the centre between Lazzari and Casale. Morten Hjulmand saw it and passed the ball to Di Francesco who ran into the gap and shot. Provedel saved, but Gabriel Strefezza was quicker than the Lazio defence and volleyed the ball in.
Sarri immediately changed a few players and in came Felipe Anderson and Vecino for Pedro and Milinkovic-Savic in the 62nd minute. But Lecce scored again.
In the 71st minute Hjulmand sent in a marvellous ball to Di Francesco on the far left of the penalty box. The Lecce forward crossed towards the centre and Lorenzo Colombo tapped the ball in.
Nothing else happened. Lazio were completely unable to get back in the game, Lecce controlled it perfectly with a superlative Samuel Umtiti in defence.
Lazio almost perfect for half an hour, and then a black out. A terrible start to the second half of the season.
Who played for Lecce
Falcone; Gendrey, Baschirotto, Umtiti, Gallo; Gonzalez (89' Maleh), Hjulmand, Blin (89' Askildsen); Strefezza (73' Oudin), Colombo (84' Ceesay), Banda (46' Di Francesco)
Substitutes: Bleve, Brancolini, Pongracic, Tuia, Voelkerling, Lemmens, Pezzella, Rodiguez Manager: Baroni
Who played for Lazio
Provedel; Lazzari, Casale, Romagnoli, Marusic; Milinkovic-Savic (61' Vecino), Cataldi (79' Marcos Antonio), Basic (85' Romero); Pedro (61' Felipe Anderson), Immobile, Zaccagni (79' Cancellieri)
Manager: Sarri
Referee: Marinelli
Goals: 14' Immobile, 57' Strefezza, 71' Colombo
Bookings: Banda, Casale, Gallo, Hjulmand, Cancellieri
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