March 13, 1955: Lazio-Genoa 2-1
- Lazio Stories
- Mar 13
- 7 min read
Fourth win in a row
Two goals in two minutes early in the second half give Lazio’s survival hopes a further big boost
Also on this day
The season so far
Lazio had finished 11th the previous season. The manager was first Mario Sperone (1-24) and then Federico Allasio (25-34). Top scorers were Alberto Fontanesi and Pasquale Vivolo with 9 league goals each. Lazio’s best result had been defeating Juventus 2-1.
This season the manager was initially Allasio (1-7) and then George Raynor (with Roberto Copernico as technical director). Lazio had made quite a few changes to the squad.
Arriving were: keeper Giuseppe Zibetti (Brescia), defender Attilio Giovannini (Inter, after 191 league games), Carlo Parola (Juventus-after 334 league games), midfielder Renzo Sassi (Legnano) and forward John Hansen (Juventus, after 188 league games and 124 goals).
Leaving were keeper Lucidio Sentimenti IV (Vicenza, after 170 league games), midfielders Franco Carradori (loan to Palermo), Enrique Flamini (Terracina, after 272 league games), Serafino Montanari (Chinotto Neri) and forward Paolo Bettolini (Monza-on loan).
Lazio so far were having a similar season to the previous. The Biancocelesti were currently in joint 11th place, with Catania, Genoa and Triestina, on 20 points, four from relegation. Lazio had won 7 (including Inter 3-2, Juventus 2-1 at home and Roma 3-1 a week earlier), drawn 4 (including derby 1-1) and lost 11. The last three however had all been wins.
Genoa had finished 12th the previous season under Hungarian György Sárosi. The Rossoblu had beaten Lazio 3-1 at home but lost 0-3 in Rome. Top scorer was Giorgio Dal Monte with 9 league goals.
This season the manager was still Sárosi. The main new players were midfielders Flavio Emoli (Juventus-on loan) and forward István Mike Mayer (Bologna).
Leaving were: defender Pier Ugo Melandri (retiring), midfielders Italo Acconcia (Modena), Valerio Cassani (Cavese), Gino Corradini (Carrarese - on loan), Giobatta Martini (Sanremese) and forward Dario Seratoni (Novara).
So far, the Rossoblu were in 11th place on 20 points with Lazio, Catania and Triestina.
Both sides had to be careful today, the B zone was not far away (SPAL on 16).
The match: Sunday, March 13, 1955, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A mild but cloudy day brought a crowd of 50,000 to the Olimpico.
Lazio were without midfielder Luigi "Gegé" Fuin while Genoa were missing goalkeeper Angelo Franzosi and replaced by Enrico Gualazzi.
The first chance of the afternoon was for Lazio but in the 9th minute Sigvard Löfgren's effort went just wide.
Genoa stirred and had two dangerous shots by Attilio Frizzi and Giorgio Dal Monte just off target. In the 16th minute Giuseppe Zibetti was called into action on an Ivan Firotto strike.
The game was balanced. Lazio's Renzo Burini went close, followed by another Firotto attempt punched away by Zibetti and on the rebound Paolo Pestrin fired over the bar.
In the 21st minute Zibetti was busy again on a powerful Dal Monte shot and a minute later on, former Lazio player, Ragnar Nikolay Larsen.
Lazio responded with chances for Burini and Per Bredesen both wide while Gualazzi then saved on John Hansen.
In the last fifteen minutes or so the game went a bit flat and reached halftime goalless.
In the second half it revived again. Dal Monte had another thundering effort go wide while Löfgren kneed a glorious chance over the bar from a Bredesen cross.
The Swede redeemed himself three minutes later with a brilliant goal. He received the ball on the left byline, skipped past Ennio Cardoni, entered the box, went past Rino Carlini and, just when everyone was expecting a cross for Pasquale Vivolo or Hansen, he struck a low shot which hit the post and went in. Lazio 1 Genoa 0.
The Rossoblu almost equalised a minute later when Pestrin ran into the area but Zibetti pulled off a superb flying save.
The ball then reached Burini in midfield, the former Milan player looked around and went forward, stopped and then courtesy of hesitant defenders decided to continue, he reached thirty metres from goal and unleashed a wonderful shot which went into the top hand corner. Lazio 2 Genoa 0.
Lazio insisted on the waves of enthusiasm but Gualazzi saved a looping Attilio Giovannini effort.
Genoa then tried to get back into the game. First Benedetto De Angelis shot wide from a good position, Larsen hit the crossbar with a freekick and then Zibetti made a double save on Dal Monte and Pestrin.
The Ligurians were rewarded in the 73rd minute as they managed to halve the deficit. Larsen set up Riccardo Carapellese who ran into the box and sent a shot under the crossbar. Lazio 2 Genoa 1.
Lazio then decided the best form of defence was attack and spent most of the remaining fifteen minutes in the Genoa half. The game however slowed down and Lazio had no interest in accelerating, their last opportunity was with Bredesen but his shot went just over the bar.
Lazio ran down the clock in the last few minutes and secured an important win. Final score Lazio 2 Genoa 1.
The fans celebrated with the customary torchlight show. Genoa too had played well and were also applauded off the field.
The Biancocelesti were still joint 11th but now only with Triestina on 22 points and six points clear of the relegation zone.
Genoa were 14th on 20 points but still had a four-point cushion on 17th placed SPAL who had lost 0-1 in Florence.
Who played for Lazio
Zibetti, Antonazzi, Di Veroli, Sentimenti V, Giovannini, Sassi II, Bredesen, Löfgren, Vivolo, Hansen, Burini
Manager: Raynor
T.D: Copernico
Who played for Genoa
Gualazzi, Cardoni, Becattini, Larsen, Carlini, De Angelis, Frizzi, Pestrin, Firotto, Dal Monte, Carapellese
Manager: Sárosi
Referee: Guarnaschelli
Goals: 51' Löfgren, 53' Burini, 73' Carapellese
What happened next
Lazio finished joint 12th on 30 points with Catania and Triestina. In the last 11 games Lazio won 2, drew 4 and lost 5. They had the certainty of staying up in the penultimate game beating Triestina 3-1 at home and in the end the last relegation slot was a comfortable seven points further down. Top scorer was John Hansen with 15 league goals.
Genoa finished one spot above in 11th place. For the last three games Ermelindo Bonilauri replaced Sárosi. In the remaining 11 games after today they won 4 (including Inter 1-0 away, Juventus 2-0 at home) drew 3 (including derby 1-1) and lost 4 (including Milan 0-8 at home!). Top scorer was Attilio Frizzi with 9 league goals.
Milan won the Scudetto ahead of a surprising Udinese who would however then be relegated in punishment for charges of corruption from the previous season. This was Milan's 5th Scudetto while going down were Catania (for corruption charges from this season) and of course Udinese. The teams who should originally have been relegated were SPAL and Pro Patria.
Let's talk about Sigvard Löfgren
Sigvard Löfgren, known as "Sigge", was born in Ronneby, Sweden, on April 12, 1928.
He started playing for his local team in 1945 and in 1950 joined Helsingborg. The Swede was a tall and strong player (1.83 and 82 kilos) but he certainly could play football. His skill and elegance were impressive for his size and Italian scouts were lining up to sign him. In the end Lazio put in the highest bid and he moved to Rome in 1951.
For bureaucratic reasons he started the season late and missed the initial five games but his first match for the Biancocelesti was a triumphant one and Lazio beat Lucchese 3-0 and he scored the second goal. Lazio, coached by Giuseppe Bigogno finished a positive 4th and Löfgren had a good season too. He played 20 league games with 7 goals (including against both Milan and Inter at San Siro in 1-1 draws).
At the beginning of the 1952-53 season however he got seriously injured and was out for a year. Lazio finished 10th.
When he came back in 1953-54 he played regularly but he was not the same player. He struggled, playing 18 league games with 1 goal (Triestina) and Lazio finished 11th (under Mario Sperone and then Federico Allasio)
In the 1954-55 season he improved his performances, he played 24 league games with 2 goals (Spal, Genoa.). The highlights were defeating Roma 3-1 and Juventus 2-1 at home. Lazio finished 12th (first under Allasio and then George Gaynor). Löfgren's higher level was not enough however for him to be confirmed. He was sold to Spal.
He stayed in Ferrara for a year. The Estensi finished 9th under Fioravante Baldi and Löfgren played 23 league games with 1 goal (Bologna). The Biancazzurri beat Lazio 1-0 at home but lost 0-3 in Rome.
In 1957 he went back to Sweden and joined Ronneby again, followed by Saltö BK, Karlskrona AIF and IFK Karlskrona, all in the lower tiers of Swedish football.
Löfgren won one cap for Sweden, in a friendly against Spain on June 17, 1951
He was a strong but elegant and technical midfielder. He had the knack, particularly before his injury, of scoring goals.
At Lazio he made 62 appearances with 10 goals. It was a pity he got injured at 24 since he had a bright future ahead of him.
He died in Ronneby on April 21, 1996.
Lazio Career
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