September 28, 1977: Lazio Boavista 5-0, UEFA Cup
- Simon Basten
- Sep 28
- 12 min read
Lazio crush Boavista but lose D’Amico
A superb D’Amico and a spectacular Lazio brush aside Boavista but Vincenzo has to leave the pitch injured.
Also on this day:
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had done very well arriving fifth and obtaining a UEFA Cup qualification thanks to youngsters Bruno Giordano, Lionello Manfredonia and Andrea Agostinelli managed by Luis Vinicio.
There was a lot of expectation this year and it was hoped that the team could repeat itself. There was not a lot of money hence the transfers were limited to the signing of Sergio Clerici from Bologna and Luigi Boccolini from Catanzaro. Fernando Viola was loaned to Bologna and Maurizio Montesi to Avellino whilst Renzo Rossi signed for Catanzaro.
Lazio made a false start. They lost their first Coppa Italia match against Serie B team Varese. It had been a dismal performance. Perhaps part of the problem had been the negotiations over the players' prize money for the UEFA Cup qualification. The team wanted 80 million lire, the club offered 20. But this was no excuse. They then beat Monza at home and lost at Bologna and were virtually out. The win against Ternana in their final game could have allowed them to top their group but only thanks to a series of lucky circumstances which did not occur since Monza beat Bologna in their final match and came top.
Lazio did not start exceptionally well in Serie A either, in the first three games they had lost one and drawn two.
In the first leg of the UEFA Cup they had lost 1-0 away to Boavista. Today was the second leg.
The match: Wednesday, September 28, 1977, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Lazio, playing in their red away jersey, had to overturn the goal they conceded in Porto fifteen days earlier, and they attacked with determination from the first whistle.
Their style of play was all about speed and rhythm — though that naturally came at the expense of structure and precision. Under this relentless pressure, Boavista dropped their midfielders deep, forming a barricade in an attempt to resist — but with little success. Only Moinhos and Salvador remained up front.
Bruno Giordano’s first run was halted by a foul just outside the box, but Vincenzo D’Amico’s free kick was blocked by the wall. Lazio kept pushing, and in the 7th minute, they broke through: Roberto Badiani started the move, launching D’Amico, who quickly laid it off to an unmarked Renzo Garlaschelli. The winger’s finish was unstoppable — 1–0!
With the aggregate score now level, the Biancocelesti pushed even harder. D’Amico was everywhere — darting around, creating chaos, and serving up golden chances that his teammates did not always capitalize on. Boavista’s response was calm, but completely ineffective.
Their passing was tedious, their movement slow and largely pointless. Lazio took full control and struck again in the 12th minute. Giordano surged forward, eluded his marker, but found himself pushed wide to the right. Keeper Sousa rushed out, then changed his mind and retreated. Giordano exploited the confusion, slotting a precise diagonal shot past the out-of-position keeper — 2–0!
Boavista’s zonal marking turned into an open invitation for Lazio to manoeuvre freely in the wide spaces. The Portuguese side had numbers, but the gaps remained. They attempted a counterattack and earned a corner. In the 18th minute, Albertino and Jorge Gomes managed to get close to Claudio Garella, but Gomes’s shot was blocked by a well-timed intervention from Pietro Ghedin.
The Biancocelesti had not finished. D’Amico, left completely unchallenged, advanced in a brilliant solo slalom in the 20th minute and fired from about 30 metres. Sousa fumbled — his second big mistake — and Garlaschelli was right there to slot it home: 3–0.
At that point, the tie was done and dusted. It looked more like a light training session ahead of Sunday’s big showdown against Juventus. Lazio were in top form. D’Amico was an outstanding playmaker, Garlaschelli was clinical, and Giordano danced through defenders who stayed metres away from him.
Was this a miraculous Lazio or simply a hopeless Boavista? As always, the truth lay somewhere in between. The Biancocelesti played with conviction, while Boavista meekly stepped into the role of victims without much resistance. Their keeper couldn’t hold a ball — every save was a gamble, and he was at fault for at least two of the goals. But the problems went beyond him — the entire tactical setup was crumbling. Every Lazio attack posed a threat.
In the 27th minute, Sousa rushed out recklessly. D’Amico aimed for a sure goal, but Leonel Trinidade cleared it off the line. Ghedin followed up — and struck the crossbar. Lazio were practically taking target practice. Their confidence turned to arrogance, and they began wasting chances due to overconfidence. Still, they controlled the game, though their play gradually lost intensity. It became a series of individual efforts, slow advances, and half-hearted shots. Only Giordano and Andrea Agostinelli continued pushing, both eager to prove themselves after being benched in Bergamo — part punishment, part rotation. They were trying to convince manager Luis Vinicio they deserved a spot on Sunday.
Then, a moment of concern in the 39th minute: D’Amico suddenly pulled up with a muscle strain. He couldn’t continue. He left the pitch, replaced by Toto Lopez. It looked unlikely he would recover in time for the big clash with Juventus. The game began to lose its spark.
Lazio were satisfied with the result, and Boavista lacked the strength — both physical and mental — to fight back. The result said it all: Lazio’s superiority was overwhelming and indisputable. Even considering Boavista’s shortcomings and their poorly executed zonal defence, Vinicio’s side seemed to be hitting their stride. Forced to attack, they showed intensity and purpose — with D’Amico’s vision, Garlaschelli’s poacher’s instinct, and a sharp attacking trio.
As for the defence — there was little to assess. Boavista never truly tested them.
After Sousa’s nightmare of a first half, coach Fernando Caiado made a desperate switch, leaving the starter in the dressing room and bringing on backup Serafim. But the situation did not improve. Serafim also made multiple errors, especially on aerial challenges.
Things went from bad to worse for Boavista in the 51st minute: Alberto brought down Giordano in the area. Referee Gordon pointed to the spot. Boavista protested, and Gordon — strict as ever — issued several yellow cards. Agostinelli stepped up, Serafin saved, but Giordano pounced on the rebound and scored. The protests continued, as did the bookings. The game resumed, but it was now just a formality.
Boavista looked resigned. Lazio, despite the score line, weren’t entirely satisfied. But Giordano still had one more moment of brilliance — and in the 87th minute, he scored Lazio’s fifth.
The match ended in celebration — Lazio advanced to the next round and could now look forward to Sunday’s big clash with calm confidence.
Who played for Lazio
Garella, Ammoniaci, Ghedin, Wilson, Manfredonia, Cordova, Garlaschelli, Agostinelli, Giordano, D’Amico (39’ Lopez), Badiani
Manager: Vinicio
Who played for Boavista
Sousa (46’ Serafim), Trindade, Alberto, Vitor Pereira, Austrino, Artur, Albertino, Jorge Gomes, Moinhos, Francisco Mario, Salvador
Substitutes: Barbosa, Gomes, Paris
Manager: Caiado
Referee: Gordon
Goals: 7’ Garlaschelli, 13’ Giordano, 20’ Garlaschelli, 53’ Giordano, 87’ Giordano
What happened next
In the next Serie A match the Biancocelesti crushed Juventus 3-0. A remarkable victory which gave the whole camp enthusiasm and hope. But the rest of the season was pretty dismal. Where was the team that had played so well last season? If one asked a fan at that time, he/she would have probably said it was all Claudio Garella’s fault. Garella was the keeper chosen to substitute fan favourite and Lazio hero Felice Pulici. The new goalkeeper, who would later win the scudetto both with Verona and Napoli, had slippery hands, was very young and prone to making mistakes, but Vinicio thought very highly of him. Pulici was sold to Monza in the autumn transfer session (Luigi Polentes also left in this transfer window, he was sold to Modena).
But the truth was that the players had probably had enough of the Brazilian manager and the chaos in the changing rooms was obvious looking at the performances on the pitch.
In the UEFA Cup Lazio were knocked out by Lens in the second round.
After having beaten Milan in January, Lazio only earned two points in the subsequent 5 games. Not good. Lazio then beat Inter but four games and one point later Vinicio was sacked. The Biancocelesti were in a dangerous position and there was the need for somebody to pick the team up, regroup, and sail them to safer harbours. That man was Bob Lovati and despite losing the first match to Napoli, Lazio managed to win three games and get out of trouble.
At the end of May Lazio played the Intertoto Cup in a group made up of Nantes, Sparta Rotterdam and Beerschot. Lazio came second in their group on goal difference.
Let’s talk about Vincenzo D’Amico
Vincenzo D’Amico was one of the greatest talents in Italian football.
Young hero of the 1973-74 scudetto, he was a player that on a good day could be as good as Pele. He often came to the rescue when Lazio were in difficulty, a true captain. He probably would have deserved more, especially at Nazionale level, but a general ostracism on behalf of selectors never allowed him to help his country. He played as a number 10, but at times also at midfield.
Born in Latina, near Rome, on November 5 1954, he started playing football with Cos Latina youth team and then joined Almas in 1969. He was spotted by Lazio scout and former player Carlo Galli and joined the Biancocelesti in 1970. He was undisciplined, often got into trouble and certainly liked his food, but he was a natural talent. He played in the Primavera team and the reserves championship but suffered a first serious injury which forced him out for a lengthy period.
By the time he debuted professionally on May 21 1971 against Modena, he was already a well-known name among fans. In fact, many went to see that match just to have a first glimpse of Lazio’s Golden Boy, as many called him at the time.
In 1972 he suffered another bad injury which forced him out of action for over a year. After just missing out on the 1972-73 Scudetto, for the next season manager Tommaso Maestrelli selected him for the pre-season training to see if he had fully recovered. He debuted in Serie A on October 14 1973 and from then on basically never left the team.
Maestrelli made sure Vincenzo never got into trouble by confiscating his driver’s licence, limiting his wages, and making sure, via Pino Wilson, that he did not over eat. It worked as D’Amico, at only 19, became one of the protagonists of Lazio’s scudetto.
“You know why Lazio did not win the scudetto in 1973? Because I was not there. As soon as I came into the team Lazio won. That was the difference between those two years”, he often said jokingly, but not too much.
When Giorgio Chinaglia left, he found an attacking partner in Bruno Giordano who thanks to his assists became a lethal goal scorer. With age, D’Amico also became more responsible on the pitch. In 1976, with Lazio very near relegation and without Chinaglia, who had left to play for New York Cosmos, he took the team by the hand and led them to victory against Milan. Lazio stayed in Serie A.
He suffered another serious injury in 1977 which kept him out for most of the season. In 1978 he was sold to Inter but he refused to go and stayed in Rome.
In 1980 Giordano, Lionello Manfredonia, Wilson and Massimo Cacciatori were arrested for match fixing. But there was a game to be played which was fundamental to avoid relegation. D’Amico took a team full of young players under his wing and once again helped them to safety.
Lazio in the end were relegated just the same due to the match fixing punishment. The problem then was that President Umberto Lenzini had sold Giordano and Manfredonia and as a consequence invested heavily in the summer transfer window. But now all the deals were off, so Lazio were forced to sell D’Amico. He signed for Torino replacing Claudio Sala, who had achieved hero status at the club after winning a scudetto in 1975-76.
He personally did not do too badly for Toro, under Ercole Rabitti, but the team was not doing well and the manager was sacked. Then under Romano Cazzaniga he played a lot less and at the end of the season he requested to go back to Lazio.
He returned to a team that had just suffered a huge disappointment. While D’Amico was away the Biancocelesti, with two games to the end of the season, were joint second with Genoa and Cesena on 44 points. Genoa and Cesena won away; Lazio were struggling against Vicenza. In the 90th minute, the Biancocelesti were awarded a penalty. Stefano Chiodi, who had never missed a spot kick in his entire career, kicked the ball out. Lazio stayed in Serie B.
When D'Amico returned the team were in difficulty and a return to Serie A was never a possibility. Far from it, in the last home game against Varese Lazio, had to win to avoid relegation. Trailing two zero after only 15 minutes, D’Amico once again took the team by the hand and with a hat trick allowed Lazio to avoid serious trouble.
In 1982-83, Giordano and Manfredonia returned to play and with D’Amico’s help led Lazio to an agonised promotion. At a certain point however all had seemed lost, but then Lazio managed a late comeback and clinched promotion with a draw in the last game. A memorable moment was D’Amico’s goal against Milan. Lazio were 2-1 down and in the dying minutes Enrico Vella gave a great ball to Vincenzo. His shot hit the crossbar, Milan were unable to clear, ball back to D’Amico who equalised.
The first year in Serie A was not easy. Giorgio Chinaglia had come back as President but Lazio were struggling. Things went from bad to worse. In a match at Ascoli, Giordano broke his leg following a ruthless tackle by Antonio Bogoni (who was not even booked). Lazio only had nine points after the first half of the season. At this point D’Amico and Manfredonia took matters in their own hands and stepped up to lead the team. Lazio managed to avoid relegation in the last match. Unforgettable were his two goals against Roma in the derby which allowed Lazio to draw a game in which they were clear underdogs.
Nobody could do very much in the 1984-85 season. The disastrous decision by Chinaglia to sack Paolo Carosi and call Juan Carlos Lorenzo to manage Lazio was a nail in the coffin for the BIancocelesti's hopes of avoiding relegation. The 1985-86 season was his last year at Lazio. Physical problems limited his appearances to just 12.
In total Vincenzo D’Amico played 336 games for Lazio (201 in Serie A, 74 in Serie B, 54 in Coppa Italia and 7 in the UEFA Cup) and scored 51 goals (25 in Serie A, 15 in Serie B and 11 in Coppa Italia). He is in eleventh place as far as number of total appearances for Lazio are concerned, ahead of Felipe Anderson and behind Luca Marchegiani.
In 1986 he signed for Ternana in Serie C2 and stayed for two seasons before an umpteenth serious injury forced Vincenzo to retire.
As far as the Nazionale, D’Amico had a difficult relationship with the Azzurri. He played in the Juniors as a kid, in the Under-23's and the B team. Nonetheless he was never taken into consideration by Enzo Bearzot until he moved to Torino. Then he was called up a couple of times but never got to play. A final argument with Bearzot then ultimately eliminated all future possibilities.
After he stopped playing D’Amico did some scouting for Lazio and managed some amateur teams. His main job however was as commentator for RAI, the state-owned television channel, particularly Serie B.
Death
Vincenzo died in Rome on July 1, 2023. He had been fighting against cancer for the past couple of years and in a post on Facebook on May 7 he had written “they tell me that cancer patients bring out unexpected strengths!!! I’m trying”.
Lazio issued a statement: “President Claudio Lotito and all S.S. Lazio heard with great sadness and deep emotion the news of Vincenzo D'Amico's death, an undisputed protagonist of the 1973/74 Scudetto. Lazio legend and courageous captain in times of difficulty for the Club, Vincenzino, as many have always called him, made fans of different generations fall in love with his magic on the pitch and his infinite attachment to the jersey. D`Amico played for Lazio from 1971 to 1980 and, after a year in Turin, from 1981 to 1986: he never lacked passion, commitment and dedication to the Biancocelesti colours. President Lotito, on behalf of the entire Club, extends his most sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. We will never forget you, Vincenzo!”
D’Amico was a Lazio legend. Loved by the fans, his attachment to Lazio in times of trouble was always commendable and he will never be forgotten.
O Captain! My captain!
Lazio career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Serie B | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
1971-72 | 6 (1) | - | 1 | 5 (1) | - |
1973-74 | 36 (2) | 27 (2) | - | 6 | 3 |
1974-75 | 30 (1) | 26 | - | 4 (1) | - |
1975-76 | 31 (5) | 22 (4) | - | 8 (1) | 1 |
1976-77 | 21 (3) | 17 (2) | - | 4 (1) | - |
1977-78 | 14 (3) | 9 (2) | - | 2 (1) | 3 |
1978-79 | 28 (3) | 25 (2) | - | 3 (1) | - |
1979-80 | 33 (5) | 28 (4) | - | 5 (1) | - |
1981-82 | 33 (10) | - | 30 (10) | 3 | - |
1982-83 | 38 (5) | - | 34 (4) | 4 (1) | - |
1983-84 | 30 (8) | 25 (7) | - | 5 (1) | - |
1984-85 | 25 (3) | 22 (2) | - | 3 (1) | - |
1985-86 | 11 (2) | - | 10 (1) | 1 (1) | - |
Total | 336 (51) | 201 (25) | 74 (15) | 54 (11) | 7 |
Sources
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