Ghio gives Lazio late but well deserved victory
Lazio win despite referee and conditions to conquer solitary second place
Also on this day: April 13, 1986, Lazio - Cesena 1-1. An early strike by Lazio’s top scorer is levelled by a "Condor" Agostini goal. Player of the day: Fortunato Torrisi
The season so far
The 1967-68 season had seen Lazio come in 11th in Serie B. The manager Renato Gei had been replaced by former goalkeeper Roberto Lovati in February. They had a good home record but didn't win even once away and had the least prolific attack of the league.
This year Argentine Juan Carlos Lorenzo was in charge but as he was not in possession of the suitable documentation (Italian passport), he was officially called D.T (Technical Director) and on match days it was Bob Lovati who sat on the bench. From March onwards however "Toto" was finally allowed to leave the stands and take his proper place on the sidelines.
The main changes to the squad were the arrival of defenders Mario Facco (Inter) and Guido Onor (Juventus), midfielder Ferruccio Mazzola (Inter) and striker Gian Piero Ghio (Avellino). Leaving Lazio were goalkeeper Idilio Cei (Palermo), defenders Pierluigi Ronzon (retiring) and Alberto Mori (Sambenedettese).
Lazio were considered one of the favourites for promotion but the start had been slightly hesitant with two defeats in the first five games (Livorno and Ternana, both away). They had then picked up. They came into today's game joint second on 33 points after 11 wins, 11 draws and 4 defeats, they were only one point behind leaders Brescia. Top scorer was Ghio with 9 league goals.
Spal were low down in the table after being relegated from Serie A the previous season. They had ambitions to jump straight back up again but things were not going as hoped. The Ferraresi had already changed managers after four games from Francesco Petagna to Serafino Montanari. The "Art and Work" club founded by Salesian priests was struggling and risking the double drop. The "Estensi" were on 23 points after 6 wins, 11 draws (including Lazio 1-1) and 10 defeats. They had not won since February 23 and had lost four out of the last five games. Things were not looking good, they needed something out of today's match.
Spal had two interesting players on their books. One was a young Alberto Bigon who would go on to play 218 league games for Milan and then 57 for Lazio, he would also win the scudetto as manager of Napoli. The other was Luigi del Neri who would later be a top coach with Chievo, Porto, Roma, Atalanta and Juventus among others.
The match: Sunday, April 11, 1969, Stadio Comunale, Ferrara
Serie B was returning after a week's break and today's match was an important one for opposing reasons; Lazio's promotion race and Spal's relegation battle.
The conditions in Ferrara were far from ideal for playing football. It was a cold, wet day and the pitch was waterlogged and barely playable.
The game went ahead and Lazio started strongly playing excellent football despite the environmental obstacles. In the 10th minute the Biancocelesti were denied a blatant penalty. Ghio, only five metres from goal, was first pushed by Roberto Ranzani and then tripped by Giampietro Vitali. A clear penalty but not for the man in black despite Lazio's appeals. The Corriere dello Sport newspaper the following day described it as " the most brutal penalty foul in the history of Italian football"... so "maybe" there was something in it.
Lazio however continued to dominate but, completely against the run of play, the home side scored. In the 30th minute Giuliano Bertarelli headed in from a corner. Spal 1 Lazio 0.
Lazio reacted well and had a series of chances to equalise. In the 35th minute both Pierino Cucchi and Nello Governato had shots fortuitously blocked by defenders and shortly after Mazzola II shaved the post. More chances followed with Giuseppe Massa and Mazzola but the score line remained unchanged at half time; 1-0 to Spal.
In the second half the Ferraresi came back on determined to take the game from the Romans but after a few minutes Lazio regained control of the match. The visitors had more chances with Cucchi, just wide, and Mazzola. The goal was in the air and it came in the 64th minute. A free kick by Mazzola led to a goal line scramble resolved by Governato. 1-1.
The game then slowed down and both teams seemed to be settling for a point each. Then with only four minutes to go Lazio found a winner. A Giuliano Fortunato cross from a free kick reached Ghio who anticipated the keeper and put a slow but precise shot in the back of the net. Spal 1 Lazio 2.
A well deserved win to Lazio in awful conditions. They had been superior to the "Spallini" for the entire match and came away rightful winners.
Lazio moved up to second place and only one point behind leaders Brescia. In one week's time at the Olimpico Lazio versus Brescia … Spal meanwhile were in deep trouble.
Who played for Spal
Cipollini, Boldrini, Asnicar, Ranzani, Vitali, Bertuccioli, Palazzese, Bigon, Bean (77' Dell'Omodarme), Parola, Bertarelli
Substitutes: Cantagallo
Manager: Montanari
Who played for Lazio
Fioravanti, Zanetti, Facco, Governato, Soldo, Marchesi, Massa, Mazzola II, Fortunato, Ghio, Cucchi (59' Morrone)
Substitutes: Leardi
Manager: Lorenzo
Referee: Torelli
Goals: 30' Bertarelli, 64' Governato, 86' Ghio
What happened next
A week later Lazio beat Brescia 1-0 in the big top of the table clash with a goal by Fortunato. They conquered first place and did not look back. With a strong finish to the season Lazio were promoted up to Serie A ahead of Brescia and Bari. They topped the league with 50 points after 17 wins, 16 draws and 5 defeats. Top scorer was Ghio with 10 league goals.
Spal failed to stay up. They changed managers again, from Montanari to Giovan Battista Fabbri, with seven matches to go but to no avail. A week later they drew 0-0 away at Foggia but then lost four out of the next seven and did not win a match until June 8 (Perugia 2-1). The Biancazzurri came 18th, after 8 wins, 15 draws and 15 defeats, only one point behind fourth bottom and safe Modena. The "Spallini" therefore suffered the double drop from Serie A to C. The other two going down were Lecco and Padova.
Lazio 1968-69
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie B | 38 | 17 | 16 | 5 | 55 |
Coppa Italia | 3 | - | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Total | 41 | 17 | 18 | 5 | 57 |
Top Five Appearances
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
Ghio | 40 | 37 | 3 |
Mazzola | 40 | 37 | 3 |
Soldo | 39 | 36 | 3 |
Marchesi | 38 | 38 | - |
Fortunato | 37 | 35 | -2 |
Top Five Goal Scorers
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
Ghio | 11 | 10 | 1 |
Mazzola | 8 | 8 | - |
Fortunato | 8 | 8 | - |
7 | 6 | 1 | |
Morrone | 6 | 6 | - |
Let's talk about Piero Cucchi
Piero Cucchi was born in Boffalora Sopra Ticino (Milan) on June 27, 1939.
He started his football with the Torino youth sector but in 1955 joined Piacenza in Serie C. He stayed two years with the "Lupi" (The Wolves) making 37 appearances with 7 goals.
In 1960 he joined Savona again in Serie C. He remained three seasons in Liguria with "Gli Striscioni" (The Striped ones) playing 88 games with 13 goals.
In 1963 he moved up a division to play for Varese in Serie B. In his first year he played 34 games with 1 goal and helped the "Bosini" win promotion to Serie A. In his first year in the top flight he played 26 games with 1 goal (against Roma ...) and the Lombards stayed up. The following year he played less, only 9 times, and Varese were relegated. In 1966-67 he regained his first team place and got 36 games with 3 goals.
In 1967 he joined Lazio in Serie B. In his first year Lazio came 11th under Roberto Gei and then Bob Lovati. Cucchi played 25 league games with 2 goals (Perugia, Catania) and 2 games in Coppa Italia .
In his second year Juan Carlos Lorenzo was in charge with Bob Lovati on the bench for bureaucratic reasons (no foreign managers were allowed). Cucchi played 32 games with 1 goal (Genoa) plus 2 in Coppa Italia and made a huge contribution to Lazio's promotion. Lazio won the championship and were back in Serie A.
He started the next season with Lazio playing 7 league games with 1 goal (Fiorentina in 5-1 drubbing) and 3 in Coppa Italia but then parted ways. In the Autumn transfer market session he joined Ternana in Serie B.
He stayed with the Rossoverdi for three seasons playing 73 games with 9 goals. In his last season in Terni he won his fourth promotion to Serie A.
In 1972-73 he moved just slightly further north to Arezzo in Serie B where he played 26 times.
His last club in 1973-74 was one of his former ones, Savona in serie C where he played a final 21 games with 1 goal.
He then retired at 35 after 416 professional league games and 38 goals.
He stayed in football and became a manager. First with Savona in 1974 -75 and then had an endless number of teams from north to south mainly in the C1 and C2 divisions. He won several promotions; Derthona D to C2 (1977-78), Giarre C2 to C1 (1987-88), Ischia Isolaverde C2 to C1 (1990-91), Juve Stabia C2 to C1 (1992-93) and Catania C2 to C1 (1998-99). So a managerial career not without satisfaction.
At Lazio he played a total of 71 games and scored 4 goals. He is remembered as a hardworking midfielder who only stayed just over two seasons but played a major role in Lazio's Serie B winning side of 1968-69 and consequent promotion back to the big time.
Lazio career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
1967-68 | 27 (2) | - | 25 (2) | 2 |
1968-69 | 34 (1) | - | 32 (1) | 2 |
1969-70 | 10 (1) | 7 (1) | - | 3 |
Total | 71 (4) | 7 (1) | 57 (3) | 7 |
Sources
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