Lazio make positive debut but have to settle for a draw
Lazio dominate second half but Albertosi and some imprecision deny the Biancocelesti a deserved win
The season so far
Lazio had just won promotion back to Serie A. Under manager Carlo Facchini, for the first four games, and then Bob Lovati with Juan Carlos Lorenzo as Technical Director, the Biancocelesti had conquered 2nd place and a place back in the big time. Juan Carlos Morrone, Orlando Rozzoni and Paolo Bernasconi all got 10 goals each.
This was a year after being robbed of a promotion in 1961-62 when Giovanni Seghedoni's goal was absurdly deemed to have gone in through a hole in the net...
This year Lorenzo was officially manager. The main new players were: midfielders Paolo Carosi (Udinese - back from loan), Massimo Giacomini (Genoa), Alberto Mari (Sambenedettese), Bruno Mazzia (Juventus - on loan) plus forward Carlo Galli (Genoa). Leaving were defenders Adelmo Eufemi (Udinese), Gianni Seghedoni (Vis Pesaro), Giambattista Moschino (Torino -end of loan) plus forwards Paolo Bernasconi (Parma), Claudio Bizzarri (Civitanovese) and Angelo Longoni (Vis Pesaro).
Fiorentina had finished 6th the previous season under Ferruccio Valcareggi. Top scorer was Swede Kurt Hamrin with 15 league goals.
This season the future Italy manager stayed on. The main change to the team was in goal where Alberto Albertosi was promoted to first choice after the departure of Giuliano Sarti to Inter, after nine seasons in Florence (and a Scudetto in 1956).
A difficult debut for Lazio against a competitive "Viola".
The match: Sunday, September 15, 1963, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A good crowd of 55,000 were present at the Olimpico on a hot, cloudy September day.
The first shot of the game was by former Roma player Francisco Lojacono, but his effort was way over the bar and met with derision by the Lazio fans, mainly for his past choice of teams. Soon after Fiorentina gifted Lazio their first chance when Piero Gonfiantini sliced the ball in his own area, but Carlo Galli was as surprised as anyone and the opportunity went amiss. Lazio had a real chance in the 8th minute when Morrone teed up Graziano Landoni whose lob was tipped over the bar by Albertosi.
Then in the 11th minute the "Gigliati" took the lead. An excellent run by Giovan Battista Pirovano was followed by his cross for Kurt Hamrin who put the ball under the crossbar. Lazio 0 Fiorentina 1. The deadly Swede had struck again.
Lazio reacted but Mario Maraschi was too hesitant on a good assist by Morrone and lost the moment. Then Diego Zanetti saved the day with a last-ditch tackle on Hamrin who was surging towards the goal. Hamrin then became the assist man but his pass was wasted by Juan Seminario.
Towards the end of the half Lazio had two interesting freekicks, the first by Morrone went wide while the second came back off the wall and then Zanetti's subsequent shot shaved the post. Half time Lazio 0 Fiorentina 1.
A balanced 45 minutes but Hamrin making the difference for now.
Lazio came out for the second half ready for battle and immediately put the Florentines on the back foot. In the 53rd minute Lazio were awarded a penalty after Morrone set up Galli but he was fouled by Pirovano. Maraschi took the spot kick and sent the ball one way and Albertosi the other. Lazio 1 Fiorentina 1.
Lazio at this point, spurred on by the home crowd, went for the kill. The Biancocelesti had several chances over the next 15 minutes. Albertosi was superb on a close range Maraschi shot, then Galli fired just over the bar and then Albertosi again palmed a Maraschi effort into corner.
The assault on Fort Viola was temporarily interrupted in the 69th minute when Hamrin hit the post on the break.
Then it was all Lazio again. First Galli headed to Landoni but the Lombard striker hammered over the crossbar from an inviting position and then Maraschi miskicked from an even more favourable spot in front of goal. Final score Lazio 1 Fiorentina 1.
The visitors had deserved the first half lead but the Biancocelesti had completely dominated the second and would have deserved a victory. A good and promising performance by Lazio. The four Serie A debutants; Landoni, Zanetti, Gianfranco Garbuglia and Nello Governato had done well. Carosi had been positive on his return and Galli proved he could be useful with his Serie A experience.
Who played for Lazio
Manager: Lorenzo
Who played for Fiorentina
Albertosi, Robotti, Castelletti, Pirovano, Gonfiantini, Marchesi, Hamrin, Lojacono, Seminario, Maschio, Canella
Manager: Valcareggi
Referee: Campanati
Goals: 11' Hamrin, 53' Maraschi (pen)
What happened next
Lazio had a reasonable season. They finished 8th and drew both derbies. In the end they won 9, drew 12 and lost 13 (including Fiorentina 0-1). The Biancocelesti's best result was a 3-0 away win at Juventus. Top scorers were Maraschi and Morrone with 5 league goals.
Fiorentina had a good Serie A campaign and finished 4th. After the 7th fixture however, a 0-1 defeat at Vicenza, Ferruccio Valcareggi was replaced by Giuseppe Chiappella. In the end the Viola won 14, drew 10 and lost 10. In Coppa Italia the Florentines reached the semi-finals but lost to Roma on penalties (Roma's Pedro Manfredini scored 5 penalties… different rules back then).Top scorer was Kurt Hamrin with 28 goals (19 in league).
The Scudetto was won by Bologna who beat Inter 2-0 in Rome, in the only ever title playoff. It was the Felsinei's 7th championship win. The three departing on the B line were Bari, SPAL and Modena (after playoff 0-2 against Sampdoria).
Lazio 1963-64
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 34 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 21 |
Coppa Italia | 1 | - | - | 1 | - |
Total | 5 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 21 |
Top five appearances
Players | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Pagni | 35 | 34 | 1 |
Landoni | 34 | 34 | - |
Cei | 32 | 32 | - |
Morrone | 32 | 31 | 1 |
Maraschi | 31 | 31 | - |
Zanetti | 31 | 30 | 1 |
Top goal scorers
Players | Serie A |
Morrone | 5 |
Maraschi | 5 |
Let's talk about Mario Maraschi
Mario Maraschi was born in Lodi, on August 28, 1939.
He started his football with local team Fanfulla in 1950. He made his debut for "Il Guerriero" (The Warrior) in 1956 in the IV series. He stayed two years with 22 league games and 8 goals.
In 1958 he moved to Piedmont and Pro Vercelli in Serie C. The "Leoni" finished 7th and 8th in his two seasons there. He played 51 league games and scored 8 goals.
In 1960 came the big jump to Milan in Serie A. The manager was Paolo Todeschini and the "Diavolo" finished 2nd behind Juventus. Maraschi played 13 league games with 2 goals (Lazio, Catania) and then 1 in the Italo -French "Coppa dell'Amicizia", in June under new coach Nereo Rocco. In Milan he played alongside future Lazio Carlo Galli plus Nils Liedholm, Cesare Maldini, Gigi Radice, José Altafini, Santiago Vernazza, Giovanni Trapattoni and Gianni Rivera amongst others.
In 1961 he moved to Rome and joined Lazio in Serie B. The manager was first his former Milan boss Todeschini (1-22) then Bob Lovati (22-27) and then Carlo Facchini. Lazio finished 4th but were robbed of promotion with the famous Seghedoni incident. The Lazio player scored against Napoli but the referee, against all evidence, claimed the ball had gone in through a hole in the net and the game finished 0-0. In the end Napoli went up by one point. Maraschi played 17 league games with 3 goals (Parma, Messina, Alessandria).
The following season Lazio were promoted under first Facchini for the opening five games and then Bob Lovati with Juan Carlos Lorenzo as Technical Director. Maraschi played 27 league games with 8 goals (Lucchese, Sambenedettese, Lecco, Como, Catanzaro, Foggia, Udinese, Padova) plus 1 game in Coppa Italia.
Back in Serie A in 1963-64, under Lorenzo, the Biancocelesti finished 8th. Maraschi played 31 league games and scored 5 goals (Fiorentina, Bari, Mantova, Genoa, Juventus. Lazio only scored 21 goals that season and three came in a 3-0 away win at Juventus.
In 1964-65 he spent a season with Bologna. The reigning Italian Champions finished 7th under former Lazio Fulvio Bernardini. Maraschi played 17 league games with 1 goal (Fiorentina) and 1 game in Coppa Italia. In Emilia he played alongside another former Lazio, Franco Janich.
In 1965-66 he signed for Vicenza. The "Lane" finished 6th under Aldo Campatelli. Maraschi made 28 league appearances with 5 goals (Inter, SPAL, Lazio, Inter, Brescia). He played alongside top scorer and future Lazio manager LuÃs Vinicio. In 1966-67 he stayed on in Vicenza. The "Berici" changed manager twice; Aldo Campatelli (1-8), Antonio Pin (9-29) and Umberto Menti (30-34). The Biancorossi finished 13th and Maraschi played 31 league games with 8 goals (Foggia, Venezia x2, Fiorentina x2, Venezia, Lecco x2) plus 2 games in Coppa Italia. He also played alongside former Lazio Nello Governato.
In 1967 he signed for Fiorentina where he stayed for three seasons. In the first, under Giuseppe Chiappella and then Luigi Ferrero, "La Fiore" came 4th and Maraschi played 27 league games and scored a personal record of 12 goals (Varese, Mantova, Vicenza x2, Torino, Bologna, Napoli x2, Juventus, Inter, Mantova, SPAL), 2 games in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Roma in 4-1 victory), 3 in the Fairs Cup with 2 goals (Nice, Sporting Lisbon) and 4 in the Alps Cup with 1 goal (Servette).
The following season was even better and Fiorentina won the Scudetto under Bruno Pesaola. Maraschi played 30 league games with 14 goals (Roma, Atalanta, Cagliari, Bologna, Palermo, Juventus, Varese, Atalanta, Cagliari, Vicenza, Napoli, Pisa x2, Juventus), 3 games in Coppa Italia and 6 in the Fairs Cup with 2 goals (Dynamo Zagreb, Hansa Rostock). A great season for Fiorentina who only lost one league all season and for Maraschi personally.
In 1969-70 Fiorentina finished 4th (Cagliari won their historic scudetto). Maraschi played 22 league games and scored 5 goals (Napoli, Bologna, Milan, Brescia, Palermo), 5 games in Coppa Italia with 4 goals (Arezzo, Bari x3), 6 in the European Cup with 2 goals (Öster, Dynamo Kiev) plus 2 goals in the Anglo-Italian Cup (Sunderland) and 3 in the Alps Cup (Young Boys, Lugano, Zurich). In the European Cup the "Gigliati" were eliminated in the quarter finals by Celtic 1-3 on aggregate. They had the small consolation of winning the Anglo-Italian Cup beating Sunderland 3-0 while they lost the Alps Cup final to Basel 2-3.
In 1970 he returned to Vicenza in Serie A. He stayed two seasons finishing 8th and 12th under Héctor Puccinelli the first year and Umberto Menti the second. Maraschi played 57 league games with 19 goals and 2 games in Coppa Italia with 3 goals.
In 1972-73 he spent a season in Cagliari in Serie A. The "Casteddu" finished 8th under Edmondo Fabbri and Maraschi played 13 league games with 3 goals (Palermo, Torino, Bologna), 8 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Arezzo) and 2 games in the UEFA Cup. In Sardinia he played alongside the great Gigi Riva.
In 1973 he signed for Sampdoria. He stayed three seasons with 13th, 12th and 11th places. His managers were Eugenio Bersellini (The Iron Sergeant), future Lazio Giulio Corsini and then Bersellini again. Maraschi played 64 league games and scored 14 goals. In his "Doria" spell he played with Massimo Cacciatori, Vincenzo Chiarenza, Roberto Badiani, all future Lazio players and with future World Champion coach Marcello Lippi.
In 1976 Maraschi joined Trento in Serie D. The "Tridentini" won promotion to Serie C and he played 28 league games with 11 goals.
His last season was with Legnano in 1977-78 in Serie D. He still had it at almost 40 and scored 9 goals in 19 league games. The Biancoblu finished 14th.
At 39 he retired and had some coaching experiences. First with Legnano in 1978-79 and then with Chiasso in Switzerland in 1994-95 where he won a promotion to National League B. He later worked with the Vicenza female team and in the Vicenza youth sector.
Maraschi was a centre-forward. He was smallish at 1.72 but strong with 74 kilos. He was a classic agile striker who preyed in the opponent's area. He had an excellent club career scoring goals wherever he went. His peak was with Fiorentina where he had the satisfaction of winning a Scudetto in 1969. In his long career he played with forwards such as Santiago Vernazza, Carlo Galli, José Altafini, Paolo Barison, Juan Carlos Morrone, Harald Nielsen, LuÃs Vinicio, Amarildo, Gigi Riva, Nené plus midfielders such as Nils Liedholm, Gianni Rivera, Helmut Haller, Giancarlo De Sisti and Angelo Domenghini. He scored a total of 135 league goals.
At Lazio he played a total of 75 league games with 16 goals over three seasons. He won a promotion in 1963 and had a good Serie A season in 1963-64.
He died in Arcugnano, Vicenza, on December 3, 2020 at 81.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Serie B | Coppa Italia | Cup of the Alps |
1960-61 | 1 | - | - | - | 1 |
1961-62 | 17 (3) | - | 17 (3) | - | - |
1962-63 | 29 (8) | - | 27 (8) | 1 | - |
1963-64 | 31 (5) | 31 (5) | - | - | - |
Total | 77 (16) | 31 (5) | 44 (11) | 1 | 1 |
Sources