May 11 2019: Cagliari-Lazio 1-2
- Dag Jenkins
- 23 hours ago
- 8 min read
Bring on the Cup Final
Ideal build up to imminent Coppa Italia final with a convincing 2-1 win in Sardinia
The season so far
Lazio had finished 5th the previous season under Simone Inzaghi. The highlights were wins against Milan 4-1, Sampdoria 4-0, Sassuolo 6-1, Benevento 6-2 at home and Juventus 2-1, Benevento 5-1, SPAL 5-2 and Fiorentina 4-3 away. They fought for a Champions League slot until the last game but were ultimately beaten 2-3 and overtaken by Inter. A disappointing end. Top scorer was Ciro Immobile with 41 goals (29 in A).
Lazio had however won a trophy, defeating Juventus 3-2 to lift the Italian Supercoppa. A fantastic win with a 93rd minute winner, after Juventus had come back from 0-2 late on.
In Europa League they had reached the quarterfinals but lost to Salzburg 5-6 (with 3 goals conceded in 4 minutes in the return leg). In Coppa Italia the Biancocelesti lost on penalties in the semi-final to Milan (after two 0-0 draws).
This season Inzaghi was still head coach. The main new signings were: keeper Silvio Proto (Olympiakos), defenders Francesco Acerbi (Sassuolo), Riza Durmisi (Betis Sevilla), midfielders Milan Badelj (Fiorentina), Valon Berisha (Salzburg), Danilo Cataldi (Benevento - back from loan) plus forward Joaquín Correa (Sevilla).
Leaving Rome were: keeper Federico Marchetti (Genoa), defender Stefan de Vrij (Inter), midfielder Davide Di Gennaro (Salernitana - on loan), Felipe Anderson (West-Ham) plus forwards Filip Djordjevic (Chievo) and Nani (Valencia - end of loan and then Sporting Lisbon).
In Serie A Lazio were currently in 8th place on 55 points, 7 points from 4th placed Atalanta (in last CL slot) and 4 from Milan (in last EL slot). Lazio had won 16 (including Cagliari 3-1, second derby 3-0 and Inter 1-0 away), drawn 7 and lost 12 (including first derby 1-3 and most recently 1-3 at home to Atalanta).
In the Europa League Lazio had come 2nd in their group after 3 wins (Apollon Limassol 2-1 at home, Olympique Marseille home and away, 2-1 and 3-1) and lost 3 (Apollon Limassol 0-2 away and Eintracht Frankfurt home and away, 1-2 and 1-4). This meant a round of 32 clash with serial winners Sevilla which Lazio lost 0-3 on aggregate.
In Coppa Italia, Lazio beat Novara 4-1 at home and then Inter on penalties away (1-1 a.e.t). In the first leg of the semi-finals the Biancocelesti had drawn 0-0 at home against Milan but in the return leg won 1-0 away with a Joaquín Correa goal and so had qualified for the final to be played in four days' time, on May 15 at the Olimpico against Atalanta.
Cagliari had finished 16th the previous season. The Rossoblu flirted with relegation but by winning the last two games made a narrow escape. The manager was Massimo Rastelli for the first eight fixtures (W2, L6) and then Diego Lopez. The Sardinians had lost 0-3 to Lazio in Rome and drawn 2-2 at home. The top scorer was Leonardo Pavoletti with 11 league goals.
This season the manager was Rolando Maran. The main new signings were: defenders Darijo Srna (Shakhtar Donetsk) and Ragnar Klavan (Liverpool), midfielders Lucas Castro (Chievo) and Filip Bradaric (Rijeka) plus forward Alberto Cerri (Perugia). In the winter they had also signed future Lazio defender Luca Pellegrini (Roma) and Fabrizio Cacciatore (Chievo), midfielders Valter Birsa (Chievo), Alessandro Deiola (Parma - back from loan) and Christian Oliva (Nacional Montevideo) plus forward Cyril Théréau (Fiorentina - on loan).
Leaving the islanders were: defenders Leandro Castán (Roma - end of loan, then Vasco da Gama) and Senna Miangue (Standard Liege - on loan), midfield legend Andrea Cossu (retiring after 270 games in three spells) and Alessandro Deiola (Parma - on loan) plus forwards Niccolò Giannetti (Livorno - on loan) and Han Kwang-Song (Perugia - on loan). In the winter defender Marco Andreolli (Chievo), midfielder Daniele Dessena (Brescia), forwards Diego Farias (Empoli) and club legend Marco Sau (Sampdoria) also left.
Not a great transfer market for Cagliari who however were 13th and almost safe on 40 points (+8 on Empoli). They had won 10 (including Inter 2-1 at home), drawn 10 and lost 15 (including Lazio 1-3 and most recently Napoli 1-2 away).
In the Coppa Italia Cagliari had reached the last 16 but lost 0-2 at home to Atalanta. They had previously defeated Palermo 2-1 at home and Chievo 2-1 away.
A classic end of season game today with neither side with much to play for although Cagliari needed one more point to be mathematically safe. For Lazio it was a training game for Wednesday's cup final hoping they did not suffer any injuries.
The match: Saturday, May 11, 2019, Sardegna Arena, Cagliari
A sunny day in the nice seaside city of Cagliari attracted just over 16,000 spectators for this late afternoon Saturday game.
Lazio had midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic out injured and with the upcoming cup final in mind decided to rest goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha, midfielder Lucas Leiva and forward Ciro Immobile.
Cagliari were without defenders Luca Ceppitelli and Paolo Faragò plus midfielder Artur Ioniță.
Lazio took control of the game from the word go. Luis Alberto and Marco Parolo dominated in midfield and Joaquín Correa was lively up front.
In the 5th minute a one-two between Correa and Felipe Caicedo put the Ecuadorian in front of the keeper but his chip was touched by Alessio Cragno and ended up just over the bar.
Next it was Luis Alberto who threatened with a powerful curling shot from the left but Cragno parried well.
Lazio continued to be superior and scored in the 31st minute. A prolonged team move then saw Adam Marusic cut the ball back from near the right byline to Luis Alberto just inside the area and the Andalusian hit a low shot into the right hand corner, 0-1.
Lazio insisted and almost doubled the score with Milan Badelj whose blistering long range strike came back off the crossbar. Halftime Cagliari 0 Lazio 1. Total domination so far by the Romans.
Lazio started off as they had finished and doubled the score in the 53rd minute. An inspired Luis Alberto surged forward on a counter attack and pushed the ball into Correa's path and the Argentine raced into the box and beat Cragno with a low left foot towards the far post, 0-2.
A few minutes later the Sardinians made a double change: forward Alberto Cerri for midfielder Simone Padoin and Filip Bradaric for Luca Cigarini. In the 62nd minute Lazio took off Badelj and brought on Danilo Cataldi.
At this point the hosts finally responded and a long distance Nicolò Barella effort was parried away by Silvio Proto. The Belgian keeper was then excellent in denying Alessandro Deiola from close range.
In the 74th minute Lazio took off Stefan Radu and put on Bastos.
In the 77th minute the Rossoblu changed attacking midfielder João Pedro with Lucas Castro.
Lazio still threatened on the break and Parolo shaved the post with a low right footed shot.
With just over five minutes to go Lazio took off man of the match Luis Alberto and gave Ciro Immobile a few minutes run around before the cup final
The game seemed under control for Lazio but this changed in the 91st minute. Castro floated a good cross into the area and Leonardo Pavoletti beat a hesitant Bastos and put a header past Proto on the far post, 1-2.
Fortunately for Lazio it was too little too late for Casteddu and after another slightly apprehensive four minutes of added time the referee blew up. Final score: Cagliari 1 Lazio 2.
A thoroughly deserved three points for Lazio who had been the better team. Lazio's superiority had been clear with Luis Alberto at the top of his game. Good preparation for Wednesday's final against Atalanta, a win and no injuries.
In Serie A the Biancocelesti were still 8th, on 58 points and still four from the last Europa League. The only way now was via the Coppa Italia.
Cagliari were still 13th, with Fiorentina on 40 points (+5 on Empoli who had beaten Sampdoria 2-1 away). With two games to go the Sardinians were realistically not in any real trouble.
Who played for Cagliari
Cragno, Cacciatore, Klavan, Romagna, Pellegrini, Padoin (57' Cerri), Cigarini (57' Bradaric), Deiola, Barella, Joao Pedro (77' Castro), Pavoletti
Substitutes: Rafael, Aresti, Srna, Pisacane, Lykogiannis, Oliva, Théréau, Birsa, Despodov
Manager: Maran (suspended and assistant Maraner on bench today)
Who played for Lazio
Proto, Luiz Felipe, Acerbi, Radu (74' Bastos), Marusic, Parolo, Badelj (62' Cataldi), Luis Alberto (84' Immobile), Lulic, Correa, Caicedo
Manager: S.Inzaghi
Referee: Fabbri
Goals: 31' Luis Alberto, 53' Correa, 90+1 Pavoletti
What happened next
Lazio finished 8th, on 59 points. In the last two games they drew 3-3 at home to Bologna and then lost 1-3 at Torino. Lazio had been too inconsistent to challenge for the Europa League slots let alone the Champions League. Some of the new signings had been very disappointing too such as Riza Durmisi but especially Valon Berisha. The top scorer was Ciro Immobile with 19 goals (15 in A).
In the Coppa Italia things went better. On May 15 on a cold, wet night in Rome the Biancocelesti triumphed 2-0 against Atalanta with late goals by Milinkovic-Savic and Correa to lift their 7th Italian Cup. This meant they also qualified for the Europa League.
So ultimately it was a positive season.
Cagliari finished 15th, on 41 points. In the next two games they drew 1-1 at Genoa and then lost 1-2 at home to Udinese. The top scorer was Pavoletti with 18 goals (16 in A).
Out of today's squad Nicolò Barella would become a top player for Inter and Italy, Luca Pellegrini would play for Lazio and Fabio Pisacane would be Cagliari manager (2025-26).
Serie A was won by Juventus for their 35th title and 8th in a row. The unlucky three going down were Chievo, Empoli and Frosinone (Chievo are now in Serie D).
Let’s talk about Alessio Furlanetto
Alessio Furlanetto was born in Motta di Livenza (Treviso), on February 7, 2002.
He started as a forward in his hometown club of Liventina to then change position and become a promising goalkeeper.
He signed for Lazio in 2016. He played for the U-15s and then the following season for both the U-16s and U-17s. He was also called up for Italy U-17s.
In September 2017 was voted best player of the prestigious Gaetano Scirea Memorial which Lazio won helped by two Furlanetto saves in the final penalty shoot-out.
On May 11 2019 he was third keeper on Lazio's away trip to Cagliari and again on October 28, 2020, for Lazio's Champions League away game at Bruges.
In 2020-21 he was Lazio's U-19s keeper and again in 2021-22, as well as being the first team squad's third keeper for the Europa League games.
In the summer of 2022 he took part in Lazio's pre-season training camp but was then loaned to Renate in Serie C. The Nerazzurri finished 8th under manager Andrea Dossena.
In the summer of 2023 he followed the same pattern, pre-season with Lazio and then a season out on loan, this time with Fermana in Serie C. The Gialloblu finished 19th and were relegated. They got through three different managers: Andrea Bruniera (1-7), Stefano Protti (8-30) and Andrea Mosconi (31-38).
In the summer of 2023 he returned to Lazio to be third keeper. He had Ivan Provedel and Christos Mandas ahead of him for two and a half seasons and from January 2026 he still had Provedel but young Edoardo Motta instead of the Greek who went to Bournemouth on loan. When Provedel got injured, in early March 2026, Maurizio Sarri picked Motta over Furlanetto who became second keeper.
At 1.91 Furlanetto is a tall keeper and is rated at Lazio but is still waiting for his big chance to prove himself.
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