Young Dane Laudrup and "Lazarus" Giordano give Lazio hope
A lightning strike by Bruno-Gol and a brace by "Michelino" steer Lazio to possibly crucial win
Also on this day: April 21, 1973, Lazio Milan 2-1. Despite injuries, Lazio fend off the devil and join the Rossoneri at the top of the table. Chinaglia is unstoppable. Non Lazio player of the day: Ramon Turone
The season so far
Lazio were finally back in Serie A after three difficult years in the second division, the "purgatory "of Serie B.
The legendary Giorgio Chinaglia was back as President with promises of massive American partners investing in Lazio's bright future.
The summer market had seen major changes to the squad. The main arrivals were; defenders Daniele Filisetti (Atalanta), Massimo Piscedda (back from loan to Sanremese), midfielders Joāo Batista (Palmeiras and Brazilian national), Angelo Cupini (Cavese), Rinaldo Piraccini (Pistoiese), Claudio Vinazzani (Napoli) plus forward Michael Laudrup (loan for 2 years from Juventus who had signed him from Brøndby).
So apart from a young Laudrup and the experience of Batista, not much to get excited about, but at this point the Laziali had blind faith in Long John Chinaglia. The "new" manager brought in by the owner was old acquaintance, Juan Carlos Morrone, confirmed from the previous year's promotion. At this stage of the season however he had already been replaced by Paolo Carosi in December.
Leaving Lazio were several Serie B faithfuls; keeper Maurizio Moscatelli (Cavese - he never really recovered from his serious injury), defenders Ernesto Calisti (loan - Cavese), Carlo Perrone and Paolo Pochesci (both to Ascoli), Marco Saltarelli (Monza), midfielders Roberto Badiani (Vigor Senigallia), Maurizio Montesi (retired), Roberto Tavola (end of loan -Juventus), forwards Claudio Ambu (Monza), Stefano Chiodi (Prato) and Leonardo Surro (Siena).
No great losses for various reasons; injuries (Moscatelli and Montesi), age (Badiani), unfulfilled potential (Pochesci, Perrone and Saltarelli) or lack of Serie A quality (Chiodi, Tavola and Surro). The one player Lazio fans were extremely sad to see leave was Enrico Vella when he left in the autumn for Atalanta.
Whatever opinion about the squad, Lazio came into the season with great enthusiasm and packed out the Olimpico in the early games. The long-awaited return to Serie A and even more so that of a Chinaglia, was enough to excite even the most laid-back fans.
The season so far predictably had not been easy. Lazio lost on their debut 4-2 away at Verona but young Michael Laudrup had got two late goals, already showing his superior quality. They then beat Inter 3-0 at home maybe deluding on their realistic potential. Since then the year had been problematic and Lazio were in the thick of a desperate relegation battle after 6 wins, 8 draws and 12 defeats, so 20 points. They really needed the two points today and were boosted by Bruno Giordano starting his first match since injury.
Napoli had finished 10th the previous season under Massimo Giacomini first and then Gennaro Rambone, with Bruno Pesaola as technical director. At one point they risked going down but eventually secured their Serie A status in the last match.
This season was equally problematic and the Partenopei were not safe yet. They had a new manager in former Lazio player Rino Marchesi but despite adding Brazilian midfielder Dirceu to other foreigner Ruud Krol, Napoli had struggled. They had however won their last three matches (Verona, Milan away and Catania) to ease their relegation fears. They came into today's match on 23 points after 6 wins (including Lazio 3-0), 11 draws and 9 defeats. The Azzurri were not safe but had possibly done enough to come into today's game not desperately having to win.
The match: Saturday, April 21, 1984, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
This delicate relegation clash was played on a hot, sunny day in front of 55,000 spectators. It was played on a Saturday as the following day was Easter Sunday.
Lazio got off to a dream start. After only thirty seconds Batista fed Laudrup on the right, the Dane put a high ball into the area where Giordano's uncertain left footed low strike somehow went under Luciano Castellini’s body and found the net. Still inside the first minute and Lazio 1 Napoli 0.
The visitors reacted with a chance for Claudio Pellegrini but his left-footed strike went wide. Then came a comedy of errors. On a Vincenzo D'Amico free kick the referee Agnolin saw a handball by Costanzo Celestini and awarded Lazio a penalty. Giordano took it but Castellini saved and then the Trasteverino striker scored on the rebound. 2-0? No, the referee ordered it to be retaken as some players had entered the area too early. Giordano stepped up again and it was saved again. End of story? No, the penalty had to be repeated for the same reason as before. This time D'Amico took the responsibility...and missed.
At this point Lazio pulled back to protect their slender lead and Napoli's midfield of Dirceu-Paolo Dal Fiume-Celestini took control. Napoli had one big chance but Pasquale Casale's shot was saved well by Nando Orsi.
In the 33rd minute Lazio struck with a perfect counterattack. Claudio Vinazzani gained possession and gave the ball to Giordano who put Laudrup through on the right, "Michelino's" famous acceleration was too much for Simone Boldini and he beat Castellini coming off his line. Lazio 2 Napoli 0.
Napoli immediately had a chance to get back in the game but a Casale header went high. They did however pull one back just before halftime. In the 42nd minute Dal Fiume went round Gabriele Podavini and beat Orsi with a right-footed shot. The score at the break Lazio 2 Napoli 1.
So far the visitors had played more as a team but Lazio's fighting spirit and two superior level players in Giordano and Laudrup had made the difference.
The second half started with one change, Luigi Caffarelli coming on for Casale. Napoli attacked looking for an equaliser and had chances with Gianni De Rosa and Pellegrini but it was Lazio who scored again. In the 62nd minute Giordano was again the assist man with a cross for Laudrup whose speed got the better of Napoli's backline and his outstretched left-footed strike beat a hesitant Castellini. 3-1 Lazio.
It seemed time to relax and listen out for the other relegation rivals scores on the radio but then with just under 15 minutes to go Napoli reopened the contest. In the 77th minute a Moreno Ferrario free kick was cleared off the line by Giancarlo Marini but only as far as Celestini who scored from the rebound. Lazio 3 Napoli 2 and a tense last 13 minutes approaching.
Napoli obviously piled forward until the end but Lazio managed to hold on and bring home a potentially vital two points.
On a personal note the game was so important that I left a family holiday on the Amalfi coast early to rush back for today. I'm not sure I would still do that nowadays but I would like to think so ...
Who played for Lazio
Orsi, Miele, Podavini, Spinozzi, Batista, Vinazzani, Cupini, Manfredonia, Giordano (89' Piga), Laudrup, D'Amico (68' Marini)
Substitutes: Cacciatori, Piscedda, Piraccini
Manager: Carosi
Who played for Napoli
Castellini, Boldini, Frapampina, Celestini, Krol, Ferrario, Casale (46' Caffarelli), Dal Fiume, C. Pellegrini (81' Palanca), Dirceu, De Rosa
Substitutes: Di Fusco, Masi, Della Pietra
Manager: Marchesi
Referee: Agnolin
Goals: 1' Giordano, 33' Laudrup, 42' Dal Fiume, 62' Laudrup, 77' Celestini
What happened next
A week later Lazio lost 2-0 away at Udinese but then beat Ascoli 2-1 for a fundamental two points.
So, it was all down to the final game under the leaning tower of Pisa. Catania and Pisa were already down while Genoa on 23 and Lazio on 24 still had hope. Only one of them would stay up. Genoa had Juventus at home but the Bianconeri had already won and celebrated the league title.
A mass exodus of Lazio fans accompanied the team to Tuscany. The Arena Garibaldi was almost entirely light blue and white.
Things seemed to be looking up when the radios announced Juventus had taken the lead with Antonio Cabrini at Marassi after 7 minutes. Only three minutes later however, Genoa equalised with a Beniamino Vignola own goal. Back to square one until, only a minute later, Bruno-Gol scored for Lazio, with a header from a D'Amico free kick. Half time Pisa 0 Lazio 1 and Genoa 1 Juventus 1; Lazio 26 points, Genoa 24. Things were looking good.
At the beginning of the second half however Pisa equalised with a controversial goal by Danish Klaus Bergreen who seemed to score with his arm. So, 1-1 but Lazio were still safe.
Pisa pushed forward looking to go down with dignity and a win. Luca Birigozzi in the 52nd minute shot over the bar from a favourable position and five minutes later he had the mother of all chances. He found himself with an open goal with only Lazio's Batista on the goal line but somehow managed to get his shot cleared by the Brazilian. One of those chances that are easier to score than miss.
Having seen hell's door opening Lazio turned up the pressure and were rewarded in the 67th minute. Lionello Manfredonia was fouled in the area for a clear penalty. Giordano's low spot kick was not impeccable but went under keeper Alessandro Mannini for the 2-1.
Lazio then got a third, but Laudrup had his goal ruled out for offside. Still, going into the last two or three minutes the situation seemed under control, Lazio were winning and Genoa drawing.
Then in the 89th minute Stefano Bosetti scored for Genoa against the Italian Champions, Juventus. No panic, Lazio were still a point ahead. Then in the 90th minute Pisa equalised with Ferruccio Mariani. Lazio 25 points Genoa 25 points.
A very tense few minutes of injury time saw Lazio hold on for their sacred point. Lazio were safe. The decider would not be goal difference (as in UK for example) but the direct matches in the league (0-0 and 2-1 to Lazio). The win over Genoa in January turned out to be a lifesaver for Lazio.
The fans were ecstatic and Chinaglia went down to the pitch to celebrate with the fans.
On the way home on the motorway, Long John bombed past us in his Jaguar, with Felice Pulici, waving and barping his car horn in celebration at our supporters bus. All was good.
Lazio stayed in Serie A after 8 wins, 9 draws and 13 defeats. The top scorers were Laudrup and Giordano with 8 league goals.
All may have been good but dark clouds were already looming in Lazio's future, but that's another story.
Napoli drew the next game 1-1 at home to Sampdoria and then beat Udinese 2-1 at home so reaching safe shores. The last uninfluential match was lost 2-1 away at Torino. Napoli ended up 12th, after 7 wins, 12 draws and 11 defeats, so on 26 points only one more than Lazio.
The Scudetto was won by Juventus for their 21st title. The teams Lazio had fought so hard not to have as travelling companions on a trip down under, but definitely less exotic than Australia, were Pisa, Catania and obviously Genoa.
Lazio 1983-84
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 35 |
Coppa Italia | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
Total | 35 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 38 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Laudrup | 35 | 30 | 5 |
Vinazzani | 33 | 28 | 5 |
Spinozzi | 32 | 27 | 5 |
Manfredonia | 31 | 26 | 5 |
Batista | 30 | 25 | 5 |
D'Amico | 30 | 25 | 5 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Laudrup | 8 | 8 | - |
D'Amico | 8 | 7 | 1 |
Giordano | 8 | 8 | - |
Manfredonia | 4 | 4 | - |
Cupini | 3 | 3 | - |
Let’s talk about Michael Laudrup
Michael Laudrup was born in Frederiksberg, Denmark, on June 15, 1964.
He began playing football in the Vanløse, Brøndby and KB youth sectors. His first professional club was KB in 1981 where his father was manager. He played 14 games with 3 goals for the Copenhagen club in the first division. In 1982 he went back to Brøndby where he started to make a name for himself, playing 38 games and scoring 24 goals in the top league. He was voted player of the year in Denmark.
In 1983 he was bought by Italian giants Juventus but was considered too young and inexperienced so, also because the two foreign slots were already taken by Michel Platini and Zbigniew Boniek, he was loaned to Lazio for two years.
Lazio were newly promoted and "Long John" Chinaglia, the 1974 Scudetto hero, was back as President. He promised wealthy investors and a bright future but the reality turned out differently. The partners never materialized and money was scarce. At first it was even made out that Laudrup was owned by Lazio but the truth later emerged that he was merely being temporarily "parked" in Rome.
Anyway the season was a difficult one but "Michelino " shone. He scored a brace on his debut in a 4-2 defeat at Verona and then a goal on his home debut in a 3-0 win over Inter. He was still somewhat timid especially when the Italian defenders got tough but it was clear he would go on to a top level career. His superior class was already evident. In his first year he played 30 league games and scored 8 goals (Verona 2, Inter, Catania, Juventus, Fiorentina, Napoli 2) plus 5 games in Coppa Italia. Lazio managed to avoid relegation in the last match with a 2-2 draw at Pisa.
His second year in Rome was a disaster for Lazio but Laudrup was one of the few positive notes. He played 30 league games even if with only 1 goal (Como) and 5 in Coppa Italia with 3 goals (Padova, Pistoiese, Varese). It wasn't an easy season for the young Dane with three different managers (Carosi, Lorenzo and finally Lovati/Oddi). Chinaglia was in financial difficulty and the results on the pitch were even worse. Lazio were relegated and for Laudrup it was time to become a top European player.
In 1985 he returned to Juventus who in the meantime had offloaded Boniek to Roma. In Turin he played under Giovanni Trapattoni and won the Scudetto in his first season. He played 29 league games with 7 goals, 6 in Coppa Italia with 2 goals, 5 in the European Cup with 1 goal and also played the Intercontinental Cup Final against Argentinos Juniors with 1 goal in a 2-2 draw contributing to Juve's triumph on penalties.
He stayed in Turin four seasons playing 103 league games and scoring 16 goals, while in total he played 152 games with 36 goals. He struggled with some injuries and in 1989 at the end of his contract he left the Bianconeri.
In the summer of 1989 he joined Johan Cruyff's Barcelona. He was part of the "Dream Team" which included Hristo Stoichkov, Ronald Koeman, Pep Guardiola and Romario and won four consecutive Liga titles. He also won a Copa del Rey, 2 Spanish Super Cups (91' ,92'), a UEFA Super Cup and in 1992 at Wembley won the biggest prize of all, the last European Cup, beating Sampdoria 1-0 in extra time. He stayed five seasons with Barça and played a total of 217 matches with 55 goals. In the last period of his Catalunya adventure however he got less playing time and so he made a controversial career choice and left the Blaugrana, but not for any old team...
In the summer of 1994 he joined bitter rivals Real Madrid. This was a huge blow to Barcelona and in fact the Merengues won the Liga ending Barcelona's dominance, including a 5-0 win in the "clásico". The second season was not so successful. He played a total of 76 games for the "Blancos" and scored 15 goals. Despite only playing two seasons in Madrid, in 2002 he was voted 12th best player in Real Madrid history on an internet survey by Spanish newspaper Marca. Laudrup is one of the few players who is loved by both "Blaugrana" and "Blancos" fans.
In 1996 he left Spain for Japan and signed for Vissel Kobe. He helped them win promotion to the J1 League, playing 15 games with 5 goals.
In 1997, after a brief and controversial signing for Bosnian Čelik Zenica, where he never played, he joined Ajax Amsterdam. He stayed one season playing 21 games with 11 goals helping "de Godenzonen" (Sons of Gods) to win the league.
He retired at 34 although he did sometimes turn out for the Lyngby's Old Boys team.
At international level he won 104 caps for Denmark with 37 goals. Unlike his brother Brian however he was not part of the Danish team which shocked the world winning the European Championship in 1992. He did win the Confederations Cup in 1995. He has been voted Best Danish Player in history.
He then became a manager. His first job was as assistant coach of the national team under Morten Olsen. He then went back to Brøndby as manager. In four seasons he won a Danish Supercup (2002), 2 Danish Cups (2003, 2004), a Danish League Cup (2005) and a Danish Superliga (2005).
In 2006 he returned to Spain and had a season at Getafe. The "Azulones" (Deep Blue Ones) reached the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup and played exciting football but in May Laudrup resigned.
In 2008 he took on the Spartak Moscow job but was sacked in April.
In 2009 he almost joined Atletico Madrid but it fell through and in 2010 he signed for Mallorca. The "Piratas" (The Pirates) were in financial difficulty but Laudrup kept them in the Liga. He then left after contrasts with the owners.
In 2012 he signed for Swansea in the Premier League. In 2013 he led the Swans to their first ever major cup final when by defeating Chelsea they reached the League Cup Final which they then won beating Bradford City 5-0 at Wembley. He had a good spell in South-Wales but was eventually sacked in February 2014 after a poor run of form.
Since then he has managed in Qatar for Lekhwiya for one year winning the league (2014-15) and then Al -Rayyan (2016-18).
Michael Laudrup was a fantastic player, one of the best of his generation. He was immensely talented and creative. He was an offensive midfielder but was extremely versatile and could play as playmaker, right or left winger, number 10 or second striker. He was an intelligent player which, put together with his technique, made him great to watch. So he was skilful and imaginative but was also a hard fighting player and a strong tackler. He could shoot with both feet and had amazing dribbling skills even with very little space (he was one of the first to carry out the "croqueta" - a high speed dribbling movement). He had great acceleration too so could either dribble or just glide passed defenders. He was a clean and fair player, in fact he was never sent off in his whole career. In his homeland he was named "The Prince of Denmark" for his character and attitude.
On a personal note I had the fortune to often watch the great Barcelona teams of 1990-92 at the Nou Camp. It was a fantastic team with the already mentioned Stoichkov, Koeman, Guardiola but also Andoni Zubizarereta, Aitor Begiristain, Jon Andoni Goixoetxea, José Mari Bakero and Guillermo Amor among others. Laudrup was one of the shining stars of that team. I also sometimes went to watch Espanyol at Italians beloved, but now defunct, Sarria stadium.
At Lazio Laudrup left only positive memories. They were difficult times for the club but even at 19 it was clear " Michelino" or " Il Danesino" would go on to have an illustrious career, which he certainly did.
Lazio career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1983-84 | 35 (8) | 30 (8) | 5 |
1984-85 | 35 (4) | 30 (1) | 5 (3) |
Total | 70 (12) | 60 (9) | 10 (3) |
Sources
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