September 8, 1991: Torino Lazio 0-1
- Simon Basten
- 3 days ago
- 10 min read
Brave and fearless, mighty and strong
An excellent Lazio away win thanks to a Ruben Sosa goal.
Also on this day:
The season so far
The season was influenced by a player who would not play a single minute of the 1991-92 season. In the summer of 1991 Lazio bought Paul Gascoigne. A massive deal for Dino Zoff’s side, but unfortunately Gazza's reckless tackle in his final match for Tottenham inflicted a very serious injury on the English player that would keep him out of the game for over a year.
Lazio had to therefore change their plans and in came Thomas Doll, a German midfielder with similar characteristics who was believed to be able to combine well with Lazio’s forwards Karl-Heinz Riedle and Ruben Sosa. Other signings were defenders Luigi Corino (Triestina) and Rufo Emiliano Verga (Bologna), midfielders Stefano Melchiori (Reggina) and Giovanni Stroppa (Milan) plus forwards Maurizio Neri (Pisa) and Berardino Capocchiano (TSV Havelse). Leaving Lazio were Sergio Domini (Brescia), Pedro Troglio (Ascoli), Alessandro Bertoni (Reggiana), Franco Marchegiani (Pisa) and Giampaolo Saurini (Brescia).
In the first official game of the season, the Coppa Italia round of 32, the Biancocelesti had beaten Fidelis Andria away 2-0 (goals by Doll and Stroppa). Then they faced Parma in the first Serie A match drawing 1-1. In the Coppa Italia return match they had won 3-2.
Today was the second fixture of Serie A.
The match: Sunday, September 8, 1991, Stadio delle Alpi, Turin
In the 12th minute Lazio had a chance when Ruben Sosa went down the wing on the left and crossed into the box. Karl-Heinz Riedle got hold of the ball and attempted a shot at goal, splendid save from Luca Marchegiani into corner.
The Biancocelesti were very solid and made it difficult for Torino to create anything dangerous. In the 31st minute Vincenzo Scifo crossed from the left and Gianluigi Lentini headed straight to Valerio Fiori.
In the second half Thomas Doll tried a long distance shot in the 58th minute, well saved by the future Lazio keeper. In the 65th minute the only time the hosts managed to shoot with Giorgio Bresciani but it went wide. Doll tried again in the 68th minute but his shot also went wide. Eight minutes later quick counter attack for Lazio, Doll from the right passed to Ruben Sosa, nothing Marchegiani could do.
Torino used the little they had left in the tank to attack but Lazio defended pretty comfortably. The sole danger arrived in the 85th minute when Scifo crossed into the box, Bresciani and Walter Casagrande both went for the ball, clashed, and the opportunity vanished.
Excellent win for the Biancocelesti. They showed great defensive solidity and with the duo up front there is plenty of room for optimism this season.
Who played for Torino
L. Marchegiani, Bruno, Annoni (76' Sordo), Fusi, Benedetti, Mussi, Scifo, Lentini, Bresciani, Venturin, Casagrande
Substitutes: Di Fusco, Cois, Carillo, Sinigaglia
Manager: Mondonico
Who played for Lazio
Fiori, Corino, Bacci, Pin, Gregucci, Soldà, F. Marchegiani (33’ Melchiorri), Doll, Riedle, Sclosa, Sosa
Substitutes: Orsi, Lampugnani, Verga, Neri
Manager: Zoff
Referee: Baldas
Goal: 76’ Sosa
What happened next
Lazio’s main issue for the 1991-1992 campionato was the difficulty in winning at home. Not only. They conceded too many goals in the dying stages of games. It was a psychological problem that was not solved. For seven times this season Lazio threw away a win in the final ten minutes.
In the end the Biancocelesti arrived 10th, one place better than the previous season, but with one point less. Let’s face it, the problems had been clear right from the beginning. Only six wins at home were certainly not enough to have any hopes of qualifying for the UEFA Cup.
The main event of the year was however the acquisition of the club by Sergio Cragnotti, who would buy Lazio from Gian Marco Calleri on March 12, 1992. Lazio then gradually became a financial superpower over the next decade and achieve the best results in their history.
Roberto Bacci was the player with most appearances in the 1991-92 season (37) and Ruben Sosa scored the most goals (15).
What happened in Serie A 1991-92
The previous season had seen Sampdoria win their first ever scudetto ahead of Milan and Inter. At the end of the first half of the fixtures Inter were ahead with a one- point lead over Milan and two ahead of Juventus, Samp and Parma. The Blucerchiati had caught up with the Nerazzurri two games later in the company of Milan. Solitary lead was taken in 21st fixture after beating Juve at home with Inter drawing against Roma. At the beginning of March Inter and Samp were tied again with Milan a point behind. The Blucerchiati were back in first place alone in the 25th fixture and with five games to the end of the season had a two-point lead which became three a fixture later. At that point Samp had to play in Milan against the Nerazzurri, a last chance for Inter to bridge the gap. But Samp won and the scudetto arrived in the penultimate game.
With Arrigo Sacchi now head coach for Italy, Milan President Silvio Berlusconi handed the team to Fabio Capello. Inter, Juve and Napoli also changed coach and chose Corrado Orrico, Giovanni Trapattoni and Claudio Ranieri. Juve acquired Angelo Peruzzi, Napoli Laurent Blanc, Milan Zvonimir Boban and Fiorentina Gabriel Batistuta.
Sampdoria were still favourites but there was curiosity over how Milan would play under Capello.
September
Juventus took an early lead but it meant very little. Inter beat both Roman teams away but were heavily beaten 4-0 by Sampdoria, Juve and Milan drew in Turin.
In the first leg of the first round of the European Cup (the last time it would be called this way since starting from the next season the name became Champions League), Sampdoria demolished Rosenborg 5-0. Roma won their first leg of the Cup Winners Cup away to CSKA Moscow. The first legs of the UEFA Cup saw Inter lose 2-1 away to Boavista, Torino win 2-0 away with KR, Parma draw at CSKA Sofia and Genoa lose 1-0 at Oviedo.
In Coppa Italia the main Serie A teams joined the competition in the second round which took place in September with no major eliminations.
Juventus 8, Sampdoria 7, Napoli 7, Roma 7, Inter 7, Lazio 6, Foggia 6, Milan 6*, Torino 6, Parma 6, Genoa 5*, Atalanta 5, Fiorentina 3, Cagliari 2, Bari 2, Cremonese 2, Verona 2, Ascoli 1
* one game in hand
October
Milan joined Juve at the top but had one game in hand. They were followed by an array of teams including Lazio. Sampdoria lost ground after having been beaten by Parma and Atalanta. The Rome derby ended in a draw as did the Genoa one.
In the second leg of the first round of the European Cup Sampdoria won away to Rosenborg 2-1 and qualified for the next round. In the first leg of the second round they lost away 2-1 against Kispet Honved. In the second leg of the first round of the Cup Winners Cup Roma lost at home to CSKA Moscow but qualified thanks to the win in the first game. In the first leg of the second round they drew away with Ilves. In the UEFA Cup Inter were unable to overturn the first leg defeat and were eliminated by Boavista, Torino crushed KR 6-1, Parma were eliminated by CSKA Sofia on away goals, Genoa beat Oviedo 3-1 and qualified. In the first leg of the second round Genoa beat Dinamo Bucuresti 3-1 at home and Torino had the better of Boavista 2-0 in Turin.
In the first leg of the Coppa Italia Round of 16, Roma, Pisa and Torino beat Napoli, Genoa and Lazio respectively. The other games were draws: Sampdoria-Bari, Parma-Fiorentina, Verona-Milan, Atalanta-Juventus and Inter-Como.
Milan 12*, Juventus 12, Lazio 10, Napoli 10, Torino 10, Roma 10, Inter 10, Genoa 9*, Foggia 9, Parma 9, Sampdoria 8, Fiorentina 7, Atalanta 7, Cremonese 5, Cagliari 5, Verona 4, Bari 3, Ascoli 2
* one game in hand
November
Milan took the lead in the 9th fixture after demolishing Roma 4-1 with Juve drawing against Lazio in Rome. Sampdoria continued to be in difficulty, losing in Naples, at home against Milan and away to Roma. Juve won the Turin derby.
In the second leg of the second round of the European Cup, Sampdoria overturned the result and won 3-1 qualifying for the group stage. In the first game of the latter they beat Red Star Belgrade at home 2-0. Roma qualified for the quarter finals of the Cup Winners Cup by beating Ilves 5-2. In the UEFA Cup, Genoa and Torino qualified for the third round. The former drew with Dinamo Bucuresti and Torino with Boavista. In the first leg of the third round Torino drew 2-2 away to AEK Athens and Genoa won away with Steaua Bucuresti.
Milan 19, Juventus 17, Napoli 15, Lazio 14, Inter 14, Foggia 13, Atalanta 13, Roma 13, Torino 12, Parma 12, Genoa 11, Fiorentina 10, Sampdoria 8, Verona 8, Cagliari 7, Cremonese 5, Ascoli 4, Bari 3
December
Milan continued to lead with Juventus two points behind. Juve had closed the gap a little after beating Roma and the Rossoneri drew the derby. The Bianconeri then beat Inter but lost away to Sampdoria while Milan, by drawing at the Olimpico with Lazio, went back to +2. At the opposite end Bari and Ascoli in deep trouble.
In the second game of the European Cup group phase Sampdoria drew away with Panathinaikos. Both Torino and Genoa qualified for the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup. The Granata won 1-0 at home with AEK Athens and Genoa did the same with Steaua Bucuresti.
Roma, Genoa, Sampdoria (after extra time), Parma, Milan, Torino, Juventus and Inter qualified for the quarter finals of the Coppa Italia.
Milan 23, Juventus 21, Napoli 19, Lazio 16, Genoa 16, Parma 16, Inter 16, Foggia 15, Torino 15, Atalanta 15, Fiorentina 14, Roma 14, Sampdoria 12, Verona 12, Cagliari 10, Cremonese 8, Bari 5, Ascoli 5
January
The first January fixture saw Lazio crush Foggia 5-2 and Milan beat Napoli 5-0. The Rossoneri went +3 after Juve drew at Cagliari and Milan won at Verona, then +5 when the Bianconeri lost in Florence. Bari moved up a little but Ascoli still very much bottom.
Milan 31, Juventus 26, Napoli 24, Torino 21, Parma 21, Inter 21, Lazio 20, Atalanta 20, Sampdoria 19, Roma 19, Foggia 18, Fiorentina 17, Genoa 17, Verona 13, Cagliari 12, Cremonese 10, Bari 9, Ascoli 6
February
Milan and Juventus drew the big match at San Siro then the Bianconeri went to -4 when they beat Atalanta and the Rossoneri drew in Florence. Below Bari managed to recuperate a little bit and were now only two points from safety.
Milan, Sampdoria, Parma and Juventus (after extra time) qualified for the Coppa Italia semi-finals eliminating Torino, Roma, Genoa and Inter.
Milan 36, Juventus 32, Napoli 28, Parma 28, Torino 27, Inter 25, Sampdoria 24, Lazio 23, Genoa 23, Atalanta 23, Roma 22, Fiorentina 21, Foggia 20, Verona 16, Bari 14, Cagliari 14, Cremonese 11, Ascoli 9
March
Milan and Juventus continued hand in hand mirroring each other’s results though the Bianconeri went very close to losing at home against Lazio. The Rome derby ended in another draw.
In the European Cup, Sampdoria lost at Anderlecht away but beat them at home. In the Cup Winners Cup quarter finals, Roma were eliminated by Monaco 1-0 on aggregate. Genoa and Torino qualified for the UEFA Cup semi-finals by eliminating Liverpool (4-1 on aggregate) and B 1903 (3-0 on aggregate).
In the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals, Parma beat Sampdoria 1-0, Milan and Juventus drew 0-0.
Milan 43, Juventus 39, Napoli 32, Torino 30, Sampdoria 29, Parma 29, Inter 29, Roma 28, Lazio 27, Atalanta 27, Genoa 26, Foggia 23, Fiorentina 22, Cagliari 20, Verona 19, Bari 17, Cremonese 15, Ascoli 13
April
Juventus lost the derby and Milan crushed Sampdoria 5-1 basically ending the scudetto race seven games early. The Rossoneri won the derby and with four matches left were +5 over the Bianconeri. Bari, Verona, Cremonese and Ascoli were now probably too far behind to avoid Serie B.
In the penultimate game of the European Cup group phase Sampdoria won away to Red Star Belgrade. The table read Samp 7 points, Red Star 6, Anderlecht 4 and Panathinaikos 3. To reach the final they needed at least a point in the last match at home against the Greeks. And they did. In the final at Wembley they would meet Barcelona. Torino qualified for the final of the UEFA Cup by eliminating Real Madrid 3-2 on aggregate. Genoa were eliminated by Ajax 4-3 on aggregate. In the first leg of the final Torino drew 2-2 at home with the Dutch.
Parma and Juventus qualified for the Coppa Italia final eliminating Sampdoria (after extra time) and Milan.
Milan 49, Juventus 44, Napoli 39, Torino 36, Parma 34, Lazio 32, Sampdoria 32, Roma 32, Inter 32, Foggia 29, Atalanta 29, Genoa 29, Fiorentina 28, Cagliari 25, Bari 21, Verona 19, Cremonese 17, Ascoli 13
May
Milan secured the scudetto with a game to spare after beating Verona 4-0. The fight to stay in Serie A also ended early. But there was still a battle for the final UEFA Cup places. With 90 minutes still to play, Torino was on 41 points, Napoli 40, Roma 38, Samp and Parma 37. Roma won their last game against Bari and got the last qualifying position.
In the final of the European Cup, Sampdoria lost in extra time to Barcelona. Torino were unable to turn the tie around in the UEFA Cup final drawing 0-0 in Amsterdam against Ajax.
In the Coppa Italia final, Juventus won the first leg 1-0 but Parma managed to overturn the result in the return match and win their first trophy.
As a result, Milan would play in the Champions League, Parma in the Cup Winners Cup, Juventus, Torino, Napoli and Roma in the UEFA Cup.
Brescia, Pescara, Ancona and Udinese were promoted from Serie B.
Marco Van Basten was the top scorer with 25 goals.
Final table: Milan 56, Juventus 48, Torino 43, Napoli 42, Roma 40, Sampdoria 38, Parma 38, Inter 37, Foggia 35, Lazio 34, Atalanta 34, Fiorentina 32, Cagliari 29, Genoa 29, Bari 22, Verona 21, Cremonese 20, Ascoli 14
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