March 13, 2017: Lazio -Torino 3-1
- Dag Jenkins
- 3h
- 11 min read
Late but deserved
Two late goals by Keita and Anderson give Lazio good win
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had finished 8th. The Biancocelesti had played 31 league games under Stefano Pioli and then the last 7 with Simone Inzaghi. They had reached the last 16 of Europa League (after failing to get through the CL preliminary round against Bayer Leverkusen) and the quarterfinals of the Coppa Italia.
This year Marcelo Bielsa had been chosen but "El Loco" lived up to his name and resigned after only a few days due to divergences over transfer market issues. At this point Simone Inzaghi was called back.
The main new signings were goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha (Salernitana- end of loan), defenders Bastos (Rostov), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Wallace (Braga), midfielder Luís Alberto (Liverpool) and striker Ciro Immobile (Seville).
Leaving were goalkeeper Etrit Berisha (Atalanta - on loan), defenders Edson Braafheid (end of contract), Santiago Gentiletti (Genoa), Abdoulay Konko (end of contract), Mauricio (Spartak Moscow - on loan), midfielders Antonio Candreva (Inter), Ogenyi "Eddy" Onazi (Trabzonspor), Stefano Mauri (end of contract) and striker Miroslav Klose (retired). So, a few players difficult to replace.
The Serie A season had started with a 4-3 away win at Atalanta followed by a 0-1 home defeat by Juventus and a 1-1 away draw at Chievo Verona. Since then Lazio had done well: winning 15, drawing 4 (including Torino 2-2) and losing 5 (including derby 0-2). The Biancocelesti came from three consecutive wins and were currently 4th on 53 points (one ahead of Atalanta, two Inter and three Milan). Third place and a Champions League slot was held by Napoli on 57 points.
In the Coppa Italia had defeated Genoa 4-2 at home and Inter 2-1 away to set up a semi-final against eternal rivals Roma. In the first home leg on March 1 the Biancocelesti had won 2-0 (Milinkovic-Savic, Immobile). The return game would be on April 4 but Lazio were in a good position.
Torino had finished 12th the previous season under Gian Piero Ventura. The Granata had lost 0-3 to Lazio in Rome and drawn 1-1 at home. The top scorer was Andrea Belotti with 12 league goals.
This season the manager was former Lazio player Siniša Mihajlović. Toro had been active on the transfer market, coming in were goalkeeper Joe Hart (Manchester City - on loan), defenders Antonio Barreca (Cagliari - back from loan), Leandro Cástan (Roma - on loan), Lorenzo De Silvestri (Sampdoria) and Luca Rossettini (Bologna), midfielders Samuel Gustafson (Häcken), Saša Lukić (Partizan), Mirko Valdifiori (Napoli) plus forwards Lucas Boyé (River Plate via Newells Old Boys), Iago Falque (Roma) and Adem Ljajić (Roma). In the January session, forward Juan Manuel Iturbe had also arrived (Roma - on loan).
Leaving were defenders Kamil Glik (Monaco), Pontus Jansson (Leeds United), Nikola Maksimović (Napoli), Bruno Peres (Roma) and Gaston Silva (Granada - on loan), midfielders Alexander Farnerud (Häcken) and Alessandro Gazzi (Palermo) plus forward Ciro Immobile (Lazio). In January defenders Cesare Bovo (Pescara) and Giuseppe Vives (Pro Vercelli) also left.
Torino were currently 9th, on 39 points. Toro had won 10 (including Roma 3-1 at home), drawn 9 (including Lazio 2-2) and lost 8 (including derby 1-3). Their most recent result was a 3-1 home win over Palermo. Belotti was top Serie A scorer with 22 goals.
In the Coppa Italia they had been eliminated by Milan 1-2 away in the last 16. They had previously beaten Pro Vercelli 4-1 and Pisa 4-0 (with all goals in extra-time).
A game of medium difficulty for Lazio. The Biancocelesti realistically had to win to boost their European hopes.
The match: Monday, March 13, 2017, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A Monday night kick-off gathered just under 20,000 at the Olimpico.
Lazio had no important absences while Torino had midfielder Afriyie Acquah unavailable.
Torino's game plan was clear, to stay deep in their own half, slow down the pace and hope for some chances on the break.
Lazio attacked constantly and in the first part of the half Toro struggled but survived. Lazio either messed up the last pass or were unable to finish off the several scrambles in the visitors' area. It did not help that their shots were all off target. One was excellent however as in the 7th minute Ciro Immobile chested down a high ball outside the area and then went for a first-time volley which whistled past the right post.
In the 27th minute Stefan Radu was forced off injured after Juan Manuel Iturbe mistook his back for a treadmill and on came Jordan Lukaku (Romelu's brother). Lucas Biglia also was the target of a bad Iturbe foul and limped for a while but soldiered on.
In the first half Lazio had 10 shots but they were either walled or imprecise. The biggest chance fell to Immobile teed up by a lovely Felipe Anderson back heel but Ciro failed to beat Joe Hart. Torino's only shot was an Adem Ljajic effort that went wide. Halftime: Lazio 0 Torino 0.
Lazio had been dominant but imprecise while the referee had been far too tolerant of Toro's negative tactics including nasty fouls.
For the second half Stefan de Vrij did not re-emerge from the tunnel, he too a victim of some sturdy challenges, and on came Wallace. For Torino, Cristian Molinaro replaced Daniele Baselli.
Torino now played with five at the back but Lazio continued to attack also using Dušan Basta and Lukaku on the flanks.
Early on Lukaku went on one of his devastating runs down the left, powered into the area and squared the ball across but Marco Parolo's poked effort only shaved the post.
In the 56th minute Lazio finally found a breakthrough. Basta crossed low behind the defence and it was only touched lightly by Emiliano Moretti and while Lorenzo De Silvestri hesitated in came Immobile like a vulture on the far post and stabbed it in, 1-0.
In the 64th minute Toro took off Ljajic and brought on Maxi Lopez. In the 72nd minute the Argentine scored, not for the first time against Lazio. Iturbe put in a cutting freekick from the right and "La Gallina de Oro" out jumped Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and headed past Thomas Strakosha, 1-1.
Lazio almost took back the lead immediately but Parolo's close range powerful header was brilliantly tipped over the bar by Hart.
A couple of minutes later the Paraguayan Iturbe was taken off and replaced by another former Roma player, Iago Falque. In the 76th minute Lazio added weight up front bringing on forward Keita Balde and taking off midfielder Biglia.
Immobile then hammered a shot towards the far post but Wesley Hoedt was a fraction late to touch it in.
Lazio began to attack head down again but Toro threatened too on the break with a solo effort by Belotti hitting the side netting not far from the post.
It seemed Toro could resist the onslaught but three minutes from time the Biancocelesti scored. In the 87th minute Keita curled a superb right footed shot which gave Hart no chance as it sailed into the corner to his left, 2-1
Lazio were liberated and Torino floored. In the 90th minute Lazio grabbed another goal again with an exquisite finish. This time it was Anderson who charged into the area from the right and sent a low precise strike past Hart, 3-1.
The referee gave three minutes additional time but the contest was over.
A deserved if laboured win for Lazio. They were by far the better and more positive team. They had left it late but two wonderful goals had made up for previous mistakes, wayward shots and lack of precision in the finishing touches.
Lazio were still 4th on 56 points but now were four points clear of Atalanta (1-7 to Inter) and six ahead of Milan (1-2 to Juventus).
Torino were now 10th on 39 points, overtaken by Sampdoria who had won the derby against Genoa 1-0.
Who played for Lazio
Strakosha, Basta, de Vrij (46' Wallace), Hoedt, Radu (27' Lukaku), Parolo, Biglia (76' Keita), Milinkovic-Savic, Felipe Anderson, Immobile Lulic
Substitutes: Vargic, Adamonis, Patric, Bastos, Murgia, Crecco, Luis Alberto, Lombardi, Djordjevic
Manager: S.Inzaghi
Who played for Torino
Hart, De Silvestri, Rossettini, Moretti, Barreca, Benassi, Lukic, Baselli (46' Molinaro), Iturbe (74' Iago Falque), Belotti, Ljajic (64' Maxi Lopez)
Substitutes: Padelli, Cucchietti, Zappacosta, Ajetti, Castan, Valdifiori, Gustafson, Boyé
Manager: Mihajlovic
Referee: Mazzoleni
Goals: 56' Immobile, 72’ Maxi Lopez, 87' Keita, 90' F.Anderson
What happened next
Lazio had a decent season but not good enough to challenge for the top three. The Biancocelesti finished 5th and qualified for the Europa League. After today's game they won 4 (including Samp 7-3, Palermo 6-2, Roma 3-1), drew 2 and lost 4 (including the last three). The highlight in the league was defeating Roma in April despite a scandalous penalty for the Giallorossi (the famous Strootman theatrical simulation). The top scorer was Ciro Immobile with 26 goals (23 in A).
In the Coppa Italia they reached the final after eliminating Roma 4-3 on aggregate. They were then however defeated 0-2 by Juventus.
Torino finished 9th. The Granata then won 3, drew 5 (including derby 1-1 and Inter 2-2 at home) and lost 2 (including Napoli 0-5 at home). The top scorer was Belotti with 28 goals (26 in A).
The Scudetto was won by Juventus for the 33rd time and 6th consecutive. The Bianconeri therefore won the double. The three teams sadly waving goodbye were Empoli, Palermo and Pescara (the Palermitani and Pescaresi have not been back since but they are all three currently in B).
Let’s talk about: A brief history of Torino
The game of football arrived in Turin in the late 19th century, introduced by English and Swiss industrialists.
In 1887 Torino FCC were formed and played in pink while in 1889 Nobili Torino appeared. In 1891 these two clubs merged into Internazionale Torino and played in black and white and in 1894 were joined by Torinese. In 1900 Torinese took over the other two and played in orange and black, their original colours.
An important development came on December 3, 1906. In the Voigt beerhall an alliance was formed between Torinese and some dissidents from Juventus, led by Alfredo Dick, whereby Foot Ball Club Torino were officially formed.
Torino's first game was against Pro Vercelli away and ended 3-1 to the Granata.
In 1912 Vittorio Pozzo joined the Torino staff.
The 1920's saw the first competitive side. Torino won the Scudetto in 1927 but it was taken away from them due to alleged match fixing (The Allemandi Case). They won it again in 1928 and this was officially their first league title. The manager was Tony Cargnelli and their star players were Adolfo Baloncieri, Gino Rossetti and Julio Libonatti (top scorer with 35 goals).
The 1930's were up and down but in the second half of the decade Torino improved with a 3rd place in 1936 and 2nd in 1939. In 1936 they also won their first Coppa Italia.
The 1940s were Torino's golden era. Before and after the war the Granata won five consecutive league titles (1943, '46, '47, '48 and '49). In 1943 they also won the Coppa Italia becoming the first club to win the double. At one point they had ten players on the field for the Italian national side. The managers were Leslie Lievesley, Mario Sperone, Luigi Ferrero and Antonio Janni while in those years it was common to have technical directors who were Ernő Erbstein and then Roberto Copernico. The team captain was Valentino Mazzola and the classic line-up was Bacigalupo, Ballarin, Maroso, Grezar, Rigamonti, Castigliano, Menti, Loik, Gabetto, Mazzola, Ossola.
The dominance of the Grande Torino was tragically interrupted by a plane crash. On May 4 1949 the team were returning from a friendly in Lisbon when their flight crashed into the basilica on the Superga hill above Turin. The whole squad was killed plus directors and journalists.
The years following the air disaster were difficult. In the 1950s their highest position was 7th and their lowest 17th. In 1959 they were relegated. Toro came straight up again and in the 1960s finished 12th, 10th twice, 8th, 7th five times, 6th and 3rd (1964-65). In 1968 however, they won their 3rd Coppa Italia, under manager Edmondo Fabbri.
In the 1970s were good years again. In 1971 Toro won their 4th Coppa Italia. In the league, after 2nd, 6th, 5th and 6th places, in 1975-76 the Granata won the Scudetto again. The manager was Gigi Radice and the team included Luciano Castellini, Roberto Mozzini, Renato Zaccarelli, Patrizio and Claudio Sala, Eraldo Pecci and the attacking duo Francesco "Ciccio" Graziani and Paolo Pulici. It was followed by two 2nd places, 4th and a 3rd.
The 1980s were average. Toro finished 9th three times, 8th, 7th, 5th, 4th and 2nd (1984-85). In 1982 they reached the Coppa Italia final but lost to Inter 1-2 on aggregate while in 1987 they reached the UEFA quarter-finals (Swarovski Tirol 1-2). In 1989 however, they were relegated to Serie B.
They were promoted immediately under Eugenio Fascetti and the 1990s started well before deteriorating. In the early 90's Toro finished 5th, 3rd, 9th, 8th and 11th. In 1991 they won the Mitropa Cup and in 1993 their 5th Coppa Italia, under Emiliano Mondonico. In 1992 they reached the UEFA Cup final but lost to Ajax on away goals. In 1996 however they were relegated and only came back up in 1999 only to go straight down again.
The 2000s were equally difficult. Toro spent five years in Serie B and five in A (with a highest position of 11th). The club also had financial difficulties.
In 2012 Toro were promoted, under Gian Piero Ventura, and then spent a stable decade in the top flight albeit mediocre with 16th places twice, 12th, 9th three times and 7th twice.
The current decade has continued in a similar fashion with the Granata either struggling or hovering around mid-table (17th, 11th, 10th twice and 9th). In 2024-25 they finished 11th. A far cry from the glory years of the 1940s and 1970's. For 2025-26 their head coach was former Lazio, Marco Baroni then replaced by Roberto D'Aversa.
Torino's colours are "Granata", maroon. Originally, they played in orange and black but these were considered too similar to those of the enemy Hapsburgs. The legend goes that maroon was chosen in honour of the "Brigata Savoia" who two centuries earlier had helped liberate Turin.
Torino's symbol is a bull, the rampant bull which is the symbol of the town of Turin.
Torino's first ground was the Umberto I Velodrome followed by several other locations. In 1926 the Filadelfia stadium was built and Toro played there until 1959. They then alternated between the "Fila" and the Comunale stadium where they finally moved in 1963-64 (shared with Juventus). From 1990 to 2006 they played in the Stadio delle Alpi built for Italia '90 (again shared). In 2006 they moved to the Olympic stadium built for the Winter Games. From 2016 it is known as the Grande Torino.
Torino have had 29 presidents of the club. Worth mentioning are the first Franz Schoenbrod, Alfredo Dick (1907-08), Conte Enrico Marone Cinzano (first silverware), Ferruccio Novo (Grande Torino), Orfeo Pianelli (1963-82 with 1976 Scudetto) to current owner Urbano Cairo at the helm since 2005.
Torino's legends are obviously the Grande Torino and the 1976 Scudetto winning team. Other great players include; Giorgio Ferrini, Lido Vieri, Luigi Meroni, Dennis Law, Leo Junior, Enzo Francescoli, Abedi Pelé, Beppe Dossena, Martín Vásquez, Luca Marchegiani, Gianluigi Lentini, Vincenzo Scifo, Pasquale Bruno, Walter Casagrande, Marco Ferrante and Andrea Bellotti.
The top five in number of appearances are; Giorgio Ferrini 566 (1959-75), Paolo Pulici 437 (1967-82), Renato Zaccarelli 413 (1974-1987), Claudio Sala 360 (1969-1980) and Lido Vieri 357 (1958-1969).
Top seven goal scorers are; Paolo Pulici 172, Julio Libonatti 157, Gino Rossetti II 144, Guglielmo Gabetto 127, Marco Ferrante 125, Valentino Mazzola 123 and Francesco Graziani 122.
Torino are estimated to have about 452,000 supporters. In Turin they have more fans than Juventus but obviously that changes when you leave the Piedmontese capital.
The historic Torino curva is the Maratona. The fan groups have been Club Fedelissimi (1951), Ultras Granata (1969), Granata Korps (1981), Viking (1985). The main rivals are obviously Juventus followed by Sampdoria, Atalanta, Verona and to a lesser extent Lazio, Roma, Inter, Milan and Bologna. Friendly relationships are with Fiorentina, Alessandria, Ascoli, Nocerina, Manchester City, Athletic Bilbao, Corinthians, River Plate, Benfica and more recently Chapecoense who in 2016 suffered a similar tragedy to Superga.
Famous Torino fans include; Bettino Craxi, Nicola Mancino, Gian Carlo Caselli, Piero Chiambretti, Jimmy Ghione, Simona Ventura and Willie Peyote.
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