November 3, 2002: Empoli - Lazio 1-2

Four in a row on the road

Lazio win again away from home to consolidate fourth place

Player of the day: Dejan Stanković

• Other games in November

• Season 2002-03

The season so far

This was Lazio's first season without homegrown and possibly best defender in the world Alessandro Nesta. Due to financial difficulties Lazio had been forced to sell their captain to Milan. To make matters worse Milan and Juventus had secretly agreed to keep their bids low, so Lazio were also forced to sell Hernán Crespo to Inter.

Fortunately, Lazio had a new manager. The disappointing Alberto Zaccheroni had been replaced by former player and scudetto winner Roberto Mancini.

Mancini found quite a different squad from the one he had left as a player only two years earlier. No more Pavel Nedved, Juan Sebastian Veron, Marcelo Salas, Alen Boksic and obviously Nesta.

From the previous season Lazio had also let go of midfielders Ivan de la Peña (Espanyol), Gaizka Mendieta (Barcelona - loan) and Karel Poborský (Sparta Prague). Juan Pablo Sorin (Cruzeiro - end of loan) and Christian Manfredini (Osasuna - on loan) would also leave shortly.

Joining Mancini’s Lazio were defender Massimo Oddo (Verona), forwards Enrico Chiesa (Fiorentina) and Bernardo Corradi (Inter). In the winter session midfielder Nikola Lazetić would also be added (Como-via Chievo on loan).

The season had started reasonably well for Lazio. They had played 7 games, won 4 (3 away), drawn 2 (including recent derby 2-2) and lost 1 (bête noire Chievo 2-3 at home). Lazio had 14 points and were in a healthy joint 4th place.

In the UEFA Cup had got through the first round (Skoda Xanthi 4-0) and had beaten Red Star Belgrade 1-0 at home in the first leg of the second round. The return leg in Belgrade would be on November 14.

In Coppa Italia Lazio would enter the tournament in December against

today's opposition Empoli.

Empoli were newly promoted. The Azzurri had finished 4th in Serie B under manager Silvio Baldini. The squad included future Lazio Emílson Cribari, Manuel Belleri, Riccardo Bonetto, Mark Bresciano and above all Tommaso Rocchi. The top scorer was Totò Di Natale with 18 goals (16 in B).

This season the Tuscan manager from Massa was still in charge. The main new arrivals were defender Stefano Lucchini (Ternana), midfielders Antonio Buscė (Lumezzane), Ighli Vannucchi (Venezia - on loan) plus forwards Gaetano Grieco (Parma - on loan) and Luca Saudati (Atalanta - on loan). Other players would arrive in the winter including forward Marco Borriello (Milan-on loan).

Leaving Empoli were defenders Riccardo Bonetto (Ascoli), Pietro Fusco (Lucchese), midfielder Mark Bresciano (Parma) and forward Massimo Maccarone (Middlesbrough).

So far, the Tuscans had won 3 (including their most recent game, 2-1 away at Piacenza), drawn 1 and lost 3. They were currently joint 6th with Roma on 10 points.

In the Coppa Italia, Empoli had set up the last 16 clash with Lazio by eliminating Pistoiese 2-1, Livorno 2-1, Cagliari 3-0 and Torino 3-2 (on aggregate).

An interesting game today between two teams in positive moments.

The match: Sunday, November 3, 2002, Stadio Carlo Castellani, Empoli

There were just under 10,000 spectators at the Castellani, generally considered one of the worst stadiums at top level.

Empoli did not have defender Andrea Cupi or midfielder Antonio Buscè available.

Lazio were without Dutch defender Jaap Stam plus midfielders Giuliano Giannichedda and derby hero Lucas Castromán.

Empoli played better in the first half. Flavio Giampieretti managed to limit Fabio Liverani and therefore Lazio's main game organiser and Empoli were quick and dangerous up front with the Rocchi-Di Natale-Vannucchi trio.

In the 7th minute Totò Di Natale fired over the bar from the left side of the area.

In the 12th minute Angelo Peruzzi had to rush off his line to block Ighli Vannucchi. A few minutes later Luca Saudati crossed from the left but Tommaso Rocchi couldn't direct his header properly.

In the 20th minute Lazio had their first chance but Dejan Stankovic, set up by Enrico Chiesa, blasted his shot wide from a good position.

Just after the half hour a Rocchi put Saudati in front of the Lazio keeper who again denied the hosts by bursting out of the area but in the impact both he and the forward came out worse for wear. The more serious injury was to the Lombard striker who fractured his leg but the "Cinghialone" from Blera was also forced off with a knee injury. Francesco Tavano came on for the Azzurri and Emmanuele Concetti for the Biancocelesti.

In the 45th minute, slightly against the run of play, Lazio scored. Sinisa Mihajlovic took a freekick which came back off Emílson Cribari and spun up in the crowded area where Bernardo Corradi was the quickest to react and drilled it past Gianluca Berti with his left foot, 0-1.

Any sense of injustice for the locals was quelled only a minute later as they equalised. Di Natale took a corner and on the front post it was cleverly backheeled backwards by Tommaso Rocchi to Gianluca Atzori who headed past Concetti, 1-1.

In the second half Empoli were dangerous immediately as Tavano skipped past Mihajlovic but his attempted curler was well wide.

Lazio responded with an excellent header by Chiesa from a Stankovic cross but Berti was reactive and flew to his left and parried into corner.

After seven minutes of the second half Mancini decided to be more daring and replaced midfielder Liverani with speedy forward Claudio López. Dejan Stankovic moved more centrally.

In the 65th minute Lazio took off forward Enrico Chiesa and brought on midfielder Stefano Fiore. The Argentine Lopez played as striker while the Calabrese in the number 9 shirt was placed on the right.

Lazio were now more dominant. Claudio López had a threatening low scissor kick saved by Berti.

The Empoli coach sensed the danger and made two changes: in the 70th minute Alessandro Agostini for Stefano Lucchini an in the 76th Massimiliano Cappellini for Vannucchi.

Five minutes later however the Roman Eagles scored with a great team move. Corradi to López who put a cutting ball behind the defence to Fiore on the right, the Italy midfielder squared across goal to Stankovic for whom it was child's play to tap the ball in from close range, 1-2. A team effort and Lazio in front.

Empoli tried to salvage a draw in the last ten minutes but their only real chance came in the 91st minute when Tavano was free inside the area on the right but his low cross goal strike was well saved by Concetti. The Tuscans then appealed for a Fiore handball in the area but the referee said there was nothing in it. Final score Empoli 1 Lazio 2.

A good win for Lazio. They had suffered Empoli's speed and vivacity in the first half but had improved in the second and ultimately made their superior quality count. Mancini redesigning the tactical set up had also helped.

Empoli had held their own but more worrying than the defeat was the injury to their striker Saudati who would be out for the rest of the season.

Lazio were still 4th on 17 points but now had a two-point lead on 5th placed Chievo.

Empoli were now 11th on 10 points, four above the relegation zone (Torino on 6 points).

Who played for Empoli

Berti, Belleri, Cribari, Atzori, Lucchini (70' Agostini), Grella, Giampieretti, Rocchi, Vannucchi (76' Cappellini), Di Natale, Saudati (33' Tavano)

Substitutes: Cassano, Pratali, Ficini, Bosco

Manager: Baldini

Who played for Lazio

Peruzzi (33' Concetti), Pancaro, Negro, Mihajlovic, Favalli, Stankovic, Simeone, Liverani (52' López), César, Corradi, Chiesa (65' Fiore)

Substitutes: Couto, Oddo, Sorin, S.Inzaghi

Manager: Mancini

Referee: Cassarà

Goals: 45' Corradi, 46' Atzori, 81' Stankovic

What happened next

Lazio had a very good season. The Biancocelesti finished 4th in Serie A (Champions League preliminary). Lazio then went on to make it a record 7 away wins in a row. They then won 10 (including Juventus 2-1 away and Empoli 4-1 at home), drew 13 (including return derby 1-1) and only lost 3 games. The top scorer was Claudio López with 17 goals (15 in A).

Lazio would then get into the Champions League proper in August defeating Benfica 4-1 on aggregate.

Lazio reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup. They drew 1-1 in Belgrade and then eliminated Sturm Graz 3-2 Wisla Krakow 5-4 and Beşiktaş 3-1 but eventually fell to eventual winners Porto 1-4 on aggregate.

In Coppa Italia Lazio also reached the semi-final. They beat Empoli again twice to win 4-1 on aggregate and then Bari 2-1 on aggregate. However, the Biancocelesti then lost to city rivals Roma, 1-3 on aggregate. Roma then lost the final to Milan, 1-4 in Rome.

Empoli finished 13th. After today's defeat they won 6 (including Milan 1-0 away), drew 10 and lost 10. The top scorer was Di Natale with 14 goals (13 in A).

The Scudetto was won by Juventus for their 27th title. At the other end Atalanta, Piacenza, Como and Torino went down to Serie B.

Let’s talk about: Dejan Stanković

Source Wikipedia

Dejan Stankovic was born in Belgrade, on September 11, 1978.

He comes from a footballing family as his father played for OFK while his mother played for Sloga.

His first club as a kid was Teleoptik (generally considered Partizan's reserve side) but in 1992 he joined Red Star Belgrade.

He made his debut for "Zvezda" (Star) in 1994. In his first season he played 7 league games and scored 1 goal. Red Star won the Yugoslavian double.

The following year he played more regularly, 24 league games with 4 goals, 4 in the Yugoslav Cup with 1 goal and 2 games in the Uefa Cup. The "Crveno-beli" (The Red and Whites) won the domestic cup but finished 2nd in the league behind Partizan.

In 1996-97 he played 26 league games with 10 goals, 6 in the cup and 5 in the Cup Winners Cup with 2 goals (a brace against Kaiserslautern). Again "Zvezda" finished 2nd behind Partizan and won the Yugoslav Cup.

The 1997-98 season would be his last in Belgrade as a player. He played 28 league games with 15 goals, 7 in the cup and 3 in the Cup Winners Cup with 3 goals. Again, the Red and Whites finished 2nd, this time behind Obilić but with no cup glory.

In 1998 he joined Lazio in Serie A. He made a great debut, scoring against Piacenza in a 1-1 away draw. The manager was Sven-Goran Eriksson and Lazio finished 2nd going extremely close to the Scudetto. They did however win the Italian Supercoppa (2-1 Juventus) and lifted the last ever Cup Winners Cup (Majorca 2-1). Stankovic played 29 league games with 4 goals (Piacenza, Cagliari, Sampdoria, Piacenza), 5 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Cosenza), 7 in the CWC with 4 goals (Partizan, Panionios x2 and Panionios again) plus the Italian Supercoppa.

The following season Lazio won the Scudetto and the Coppa Italia. Stankovic made 16 league appearances with 3 goals (Lecce x2, Fiorentina), 4 in Coppa Italia, 11 in Champions League with 2 goals (Maribor, Olympique Marseille) plus the European Super Cup (won beating Manchester United 1-0). Lazio also won the Italian Supercoppa beating Inter 4-3.

In 2000-01 Eriksson was replaced by Dino Zoff in January and Lazio finished 3rd. Stankovic played 21 league games, 2 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Udinese) and 9 in Champions League (Lazio reached quarterfinals, Valencia 3-5 on aggregate).

In 2001-02 Zoff started but was soon replaced by Alberto Zaccheroni. Lazio finished 6th and Stankovic played 27 league games with 7 goals (Brescia, Perugia, Milan, Roma, Udinese, Verona x2), 4 in Coppa Italia and 5 in the Champions League with 1 goal (Galatasaray). It was a negative season for Lazio but Stankovic performed well.

In 2002-03 his former teammate Roberto Mancini returned as manager. Lazio improved and finished 4th (CL qualification). Stankovic played 29 league games with 6 goals (Reggina, Roma, Empoli, Milan, Roma, Parma), 2 games in Coppa Italia and 7 in the UEFA Cup (Lazio reached semifinals, Porto 1-4)

The 2003-04 season would be his last in Rome. In January he joined Inter. He had played 15 league games with 2 goals (Empoli, Perugia), 4 in Coppa Italia with 2 goals (Parma home and away) and 8 in the Champions League. For the record Lazio finished 6th (UC qualification) and won the Coppa Italia (Juventus 4-2 on aggregate).

At Inter he found Alberto Zaccheroni as manager and the Nerazzurri finished 4th. Stankovic played 14 league games with 4 goals (Milan, Brescia, Juventus, Bologna) and 2 games in Coppa Italia. He played alongside Christian Vieri and Matías Almeyda from his Lazio days.

In 2004-05 former Lazio teammate Roberto Mancini arrived as manager (with Fernando Orsi as assistant). The "Beneamata" finished 3rd, reached the quarterfinals of Champions League (Milan 0-5 on aggregate) but won the Coppa Italia (Roma 3-0 on aggregate). Stankovic played 31 league games with 3 goals (Chievo, Atalanta, Cagliari), 6 games in Coppa Italia and 10 in CL with 3 goals (Basel, Anderlecht, Valencia). His teammates included Sinisa Mihajlovic, Juan Sebastian Veron and Beppe Favalli.

In 2005-06 Inter finished 3rd but were awarded the Scudetto due to Juventus and Milan's misdemeanours in the Calciopoli scandal. The Nerazzurri ‘also' won the Italian Supercoppa beating Juventus 1-0 with a goal by Veron in extra-time and the Coppa Italia (Roma 4-2 on aggregate). In the Champions League the quarterfinals were fatal again (Villareal on away goals). Stankovic played 23 league games with 2 goals (Lecce home and away), 6 games in Coppa Italia with 2 goals (Lazio home and away) and 8 in CL with 2 goals (Ajax home and away). He played alongside former Lazio César.

In 2006-07 Mancini was still there but his assistant became Sinisa Mihajlovic. Inter won the league fair and square as well as the Italian Supercoppa (4-3 Roma, from 0-3 down) but lost the Coppa Italia final (4-7 on aggregate to Roma). In the Champions League they only reached the last 16 (Valencia on away goals). Stankovic played 34 league games with 6 goals (Chievo, Catania x2, Milan, Fiorentina, Empoli), 3 in Coppa Italia and 7 in CL. His teammates included Hernan Crespo.

In 2007-08 the Nerazzurri won the Scudetto again but lost the Supercoppa and Coppa Italia finals (both to Roma 0-1 and 1-2). In the Champions League they went out to Liverpool 0-3 on aggregate in the last 16. Stankovic played 21 league games with 1 goal (Udinese), 3 in Coppa Italia and 6 in CL. He played alongside former Lazio Luís Jimenez.

In 2008-09 José Mourinho's reign started. The "Special One" won the league and the Italian Supercoppa (Roma on penalties after 2-2, Stankovic missed his penalty) but again went out in the last 16 in the Champions League (Manchester United 0-2 on aggregate). In Coppa Italia they lost in the semis to Sampdoria 1-3 on aggregate. Stankovic played 31 league games with 5 goals (Roma, Chievo, Catania, Lecce, Milan), 1 in Coppa Italia, 5 in CL plus the Supercoppa.

The 2009-10 season was a vintage one for Inter. They won the so-called “triplete", the Scudetto, Coppa Italia (Roma 1-0) and Champions League (Bayern Munich 2-0). The one they did not win was the Italian Supercoppa as they surprisingly lost 1-2 to Lazio in Beijing. Stankovic played 29 league games with 3 goals (Milan, Udinese, Genoa), 1 in Coppa Italia, 12 in CL with 2 goals (Rubin, Dynamo Kiev) plus the Supercoppa. His teammates included former Lazio, Goran Pandev.

In 2010-11 Rafa Benitez arrived as manager but only lasted 17 games before being replaced by Leonardo. Inter finished 2nd behind Juventus but won the Coppa Italia (Palermo 3-1), the Italian Supercoppa (Roma 3-1) and the Club World Cup (TP Mazembe 3-0). They lost the European Super Cup (Atlético Madrid 0-2) and went out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League (Schalke 3-7 on aggregate). Stankovic played 26 league games with 5 goals (Parma x3, Bologna, Udinese), 3 in Coppa Italia with1 goal (Roma), 7 in CL with 2 goals (Tottenham, Schalke 04) plus another 4 games between Supercups and World Cup for Clubs with 1 goal (Seongnam - South Korea).

In 2011-12 Inter had three different managers; Gian Piero Gasperini (1-4), Claudio Ranieri (5-29) and Andrea Stramaccioni (30-38). Inter had a poor season finishing 6th (EL) and lost the Italian Supercoppa final (Milan 1-2). Stankovic played 19 league games, 5 in CL plus the Supercoppa.

The 2012-13 season would be his last and he only played 3 league games due to Achilles tendon problems. Inter finished 9th under Stramaccioni. In his last year the squad included former Lazio, Gaby Mudingayi, Tommaso Rocchi and Juan Pablo Carrizo. He played a total of 326 games for Inter with 42 goals.

At almost 35 Stankovic retired.

He also won 39 caps for Yugoslavia with 9 goals, 22 for Serbia & Montenegro with 4 goals and 42 for Serbia with 3 goals. He played in the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 for Yugoslavia, in the 2006 World Cup for Serbia and Montenegro and in the 2010 World Cup for Serbia. He is the only player to have played at three world cups for three different nations.

After retiring he was assistant to Stramaccioni at Udinese in 2014-15 and then worked briefly as club manager for Inter and as a UEFA consultant. He then coached Red Star Belgrade from December 2019 and stayed until August 2022. He won three consecutive league titles with Zvezda and two domestic cups.

In October 2022 he returned to Italy and joined struggling Sampdoria. The Blucerchiati were bottom of the table and winless. Stankovic was not able to save the sinking ship and "Il Doria" were relegated to Serie B after only 3 wins. He then had a season at Ferencváros in Hungary (winning the league in 2023-24) and is now with Spartak Moscow.

Stankovic was a superb player, solid and versatile. He is 1.81 and 75 kilos. He was a central midfielder but could also play externally or behind the strikers. He was a player who could do everything, attack and defend. He had a cracking shot, good aerial abilities, positioning and timing. He was every manager's ideal player, skilful, a good tackler, hardworking and could also score goals.

In his club career he won 1 Yugoslav league title and 3 cups, 6 Scudetti, 5 Coppa Italia's, 6 Italian Supercoppa's, 1 Champions League, 1 Cup Winners Cup, 1 European Super Cup and 1 Club World Cup.

At Lazio Stankovic was part of the glory years. He arrived young but soon became an accomplished midfielder. He played in formidable midfields alongside Veron, Simeone, Almeyda, Conceição, Sensini to name a few. He played 208 games for Lazio and scored 34 goals. He won a Scudetto, a Coppa Italia, two Italian Supercoppa's, a Cup Winners Cup and a European Supercup. Six trophies in six years. The name Stankovic at Lazio reminds the fans of success, especially in his first years.

He has three sons and they are all carrying on the family tradition of playing professional football. One, Aleksander, is a midfielder for Club Bruges while another, Filip, is a goalkeeper with Venezia. It will be difficult however to emulate Dejan's career.

Season	Total games (goals)	Serie A	Coppa Italia	Champions League	Cup Winners Cup	UEFA Cup	UEFA Super Cup	Super Coppa
1998-99	42 (9)	29 (4)	5 (1)	-	7 (4)	-	-	1
1999-00	32 (5)	16 (3)	4	11 (2)	-	-	1	-
2000-01	33 (2)	21	2 (1)	9	-	-	-	1 (1)
2001-02	36 (8)	27 (7)	4	5 (1)	-	-	-	-
2002-03	38 (6)	29 (6)	2	-	-	7	-	-
2003-Jan 04	27 (4)	15 (2)	4 (2)	8	-	-	-	-
Total	208 (34)	137 (22)	21 (4)	33 (3)	7 (4)	7	1	2 (1)

Sources

Lazio Wiki

Lazio Stories