A Candreva "Panenka" is enough
A cheeky, chipped penalty is all Lazio need to conquer the Friuli
Also on this day: February 15, 1998, Bari Lazio 0-2. Lazio win and now the unbeaten games are 13. Player of the day: Giorgio Venturin
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had finished a poor 9th. They had replaced manager Vladimir Petkovic with Edy Reja after 16 matches, so the honeymoon with the Swiss was over but not his legacy (2013 Coppa Italia triumph).
This season Lazio had a new manager in Stefano Pioli. There had also been several changes to the squad, some major, some minor. The biggest buy for Lazio was Dutch central defender Stefan de Vrij (Feyenoord) who had impressed at the recent 2014 World Cup. Other good signings were defender Dušan Basta (Udinese) and midfielder Marco Parolo (Parma). Another new face was Serbian striker Filip Djordjevic (Nantes- end of contract) while local lad Danilo Cataldi was back from a loan period (Crotone).
Sadly, some players left, in particular Giuseppe Biava (end of contract) and André Dias (retired). Other minor movements were mainly in attack: Emiliano Alfaro (Liverpool Montevideo- loan) and Hélder Postiga (Valencia-end of loan).
The beginning of the season had been a mixed bag. Lazio had lost three out of the first four matches but then won the next four (Palermo, Sassuolo, Fiorentina, Torino). Since then the Biancocelesti had won 5 (including Milan 3-1 at home), drawn 4 (including derby 2-2 and Inter 2-2 away) and lost 5. Two of the defeats had come in the last two games (Cesena 1-2 away and bête noire Genoa 0-1 at home).
Lazio were currently in 6th position, on 34 points but only one behind Sampdoria and Fiorentina on 35.
Dutch International de Vrij had confirmed to be a class act, Parolo a reliable, solid club player and Djordjevic had scored seven goals so far, but had got seriously injured in January and was out for at least three months.
In Coppa Italia, Lazio had got through the first round beating Virtus Bassano 7-0. The Biancocelesti had then played Varese at home in December and won 3-0. Next up came Torino away in January, in the last 16 and Lazio won 3-1. In the quarter finals Lazio defeated Milan 1-0 away and would now play Napoli home and away in the semi-finals in March-April.
Udinese had finished 13th the previous season under Francesco Guidolin. They had lost both matches against Lazio.
This season the Manager was Andrea Stramaccioni while his assistant was, former Lazio, Dejan Stankovic (1998 -2004). The main market movements coming in were keeper Orestis Karnezis (Granada-end of loan), midfielders Guilherme (Corinthians), Panagiotis Kone (Bologna) and forward Cyril Théréau (Chievo).
The main departures were defender Dušan Basta (Lazio), Naldo (Getafe-on loan), midfielders Roberto Pereyra (Juventus), Andrea Lazzari (Fiorentina-end of loan), Edenilson (Genoa -on loan), Piotr Zieliński (Empoli-on loan) and forward Aguirre (Empoli -on loan). In January striker Luis Muriel also left (Sampdoria). A lot of comings and goings but that is perfectly normal at Udinese.
So far, the Bianconeri were in 13th position, on 28 points (9 from the drop zone). The "Zebrette" had started well and after five matches were 3rd. By now the Friulani had won 7 (including Lazio 1-0 and Inter 2-1, both away), drawn 7 (including Juventus 0-0 at home) and lost 8. Their most recent game had been a 1-3 away defeat at Napoli.
In Coppa Italia, Udinese had beaten Ternana 5-1 in August, Cesena 4-2 (a.e.t) in December but then lost on penalties to Napoli after a 2-2 away draw in January.
Udinese's main players were defender Danilo, midfielders Allan (future Napoli, Everton), Bruno Fernandes (future Manchester United) and striker Antonio Di Natale (almost 200 goals in Serie A). They also had two future decent keepers and local lads on the bench, Simone Scuffet and Alex Meret (Scudetto winner with Napoli 2023).
A difficult game to predict today between two off form teams.
The match: Sunday, February 15, 2015, Stadio Friuli, Udine
A grey day in Udine, one of the best places to live in Italy despite the climate. A small crowd of 11,000 was in attendance but this was also because the stadium was undergoing major restructuring.
Lazio were missing defenders Lorik Cana and Michaël Ciani, midfielders Stefano Mauri and Senad Lulic plus striker Filip Djordjevic while Udinese were without defenders Thomas Heurtaux and Giovanni Pasquale plus midfielder Panagiotis Kone.
The first shot at goal was for the hosts but Etrit Berisha tipped a dangerous Antonio Di Natale free kick, from outside the area on the left, over the bar.
Udinese then had a Silvan Widmer shot but it was central and weak so no problem for Berisha.
Lazio realised Udinese were not particularly threatening and started to move forward. In the 22nd minute Antonio Candreva put an inviting cross in from the right, it bounced and before Miro Klose could head towards goal he was pushed from behind by Molla Wague. Massa pointed to the penalty spot, slightly generous but there had definitely been a push. Candreva stepped up and with a beautiful "Panenka" chip beat Orestis Karnezis. Udinese 0 Lazio 1.
Udinese's reaction was far from furious and all they mustered was a Di Natale mis-hit lob which Berisha caught easily.
Lazio went closer with Candreva again, from an Eddy Onazi low cross, he controlled the ball just inside the area but pulled his left footed effort wide. Halftime Udinese 0 Lazio 1.
The Biancocelesti were leading with the minimum effort so far, not dominating but risking very little too.
For the second half Danilo Cataldi came on replacing Onazi in central midfield
Lazio then had a huge chance to double their lead. After a Marco Parolo initiative on the left side of the area, the ball reached Felipe Anderson whose shot was blocked. The ball then spun across to Candreva who hammered a low shot towards goal but it was saved by Karnezis with his feet, it came back to Anderson but he blasted it over the bar. Three chances in one but without luck.
Udinese tried to gather some momentum. Di Natale floated a freekick into the area, it was cleared but only as far as the edge of the area where it was headed back in, and Emmanuel Badu got another header in towards goal from a good position but Berisha blocked without excessive difficulty.
Lazio had space on the counter attack. Dušan Basta used his speed to burst down the right to the by-line from where he crossed low but Widmer put in a fantastic tackle to prevent Klose from scoring.
Udinese's most dangerous effort was with a Badu right foot from the edge of the box, Berisha parried and on the rebound Di Natale appeared to be tripped by Mauricio but the striker had been in offside so the problem was resolved.
Udinese had no final forcing although they did have one final dangerous long distance shot which Berisha did well to get a hand to under the crossbar and put over for a corner.
That was the home side's last threat and after four minutes of added time Massa blew the final whistle. Udinese 0 Lazio 1.
Not a vintage performance by Lazio but all in all a deserved win. Lazio had controlled the game for large periods despite not having a lot of goal scoring chances. Udinese never really put Lazio in trouble apart from a few long range efforts.
An important win for the Biancocelesti, for morale, after two defeats, but also for the table as they moved up to 5th place overtaking Sampdoria.
Udinese's long wait for a home win continued (October 26) but the Bianconeri still had an eight-point cushion on the last relegation slot, Cagliari on 20.
Who played for Udinese
Karnezis, Wague, Danilo, Widmer, Allan, Badu, Gabriel Silva (53' Evangelista), Fernandes (61' Guilherme), Thereau (77' Aguirre), Di Natale
Substitutes: Scuffet, Meret, Bubnjic, Jadson, Pinzi, Perica
Manager: Stramaccioni
Who played Lazio
Berisha, Basta, de Vrij, Mauricio, Radu, Onazi (46' Cataldi), Biglia, Parolo, Candreva (71' Keita), Klose (75' Perea), F. Anderson
Manager: Pioli
Referee: Massa
Goals: 23' Candreva (pen)
What happened next
After today's win Lazio went on a roll and won the next seven games on the trot. The roll was interrupted by an away defeat at Juventus on April 18. There were more wins (Sampdoria and Parma) but also defeats (Inter and Roma) so the Champions League qualification all went down to the last match, away in Naples.
It was a dramatic match to say the least. Lazio needed a draw to clinch third place while Napoli had to win. The first half ended with the Biancocelesti 2-0 up and seemingly in control with goals by Marco Parolo and Antonio Candreva.
The second half was a rollercoaster. In the 55th minute Napoli pulled one back with Gonzalo Higuain. In the 62nd minute Lazio were reduced to ten men when Parolo was shown a red card. In the 64th minute Higuain scored again to make it 2-2.
The Napoli faithful smelt blood and the stadium was on fire, things were not looking good for Lazio. A glimmer of hope came in the 70th minute when Napoli too were forced to play in a man less as Faouzi Goulam was given his marching orders.
The hope was short lived as in the 76th minute the “Partenopei” were awarded a penalty probably worth about 9 billion Euros. The “Pepita” Higuain stepped up and, to the horror of the locals and relief of the Laziali, blasted the ball over the bar towards the Vesuvius.
Lazio regained vigour after being on the brink of disaster. Four minutes after the penalty drama an unlikely hero appeared in the form of Eddy Onazi. In the 85th minute he took advantage of a Napoli mistake and from midfield went straight towards goal and then beat the keeper as he came out. Napoli 2 Lazio 3, an incredible turnaround in the space of a few minutes.
Napoli were distraught and Miro Klose made it 4-2 in the 92nd minute. An incredible night gave Lazio third place and a Champions League preliminary qualification.
The hero of the hour was Nigerian Onazi and the Laziale saying "Onazi è l'unico nazi che ci piace" was never as popular. The saying is obvious lost in translation but is a play on words stating that the Nigerian is the only nazi we like (despite popular belief the best majority
Lazio finished the season 3rd, with 69 points, after 21 wins, 6 draws and 11 defeats. Top scorer was Klose with 16 (13 in Serie A).
Lazio also reached the final of Coppa Italia but were defeated 2-1 by Juventus in extra time (after Djordjevic had hit a freakish double post).
Alas Lazio would never get into the Champions League group stage as they were defeated 3-1 on aggregate by Bayer Leverkusen in the preliminary round.
Udinese finished 16th, on 41 points. After today's defeat the Friulani won 4 (including Milan 2-1 at home), drew 4 and lost 7. The home winning drought finally ended on March 8 when they beat Torino 3-2. They ended seven points above the relegation zone. Top scorer was Antonio Di Natale with 18 goals (14 in A).
The Scudetto was won by Juventus for the 31st time and 4th consecutive. Serie B was next up for Cagliari, Cesena and Parma.
Lazio 2014-15
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 38 | 21 | 6 | 11 | 71 |
Coppa Italia | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 17 |
Total | 45 | 26 | 7 | 12 | 88 |
Top 5 appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Klose | 40 | 34 | 6 |
Parolo | 40 | 34 | 6 |
Candreva | 38 | 34 | 4 |
Felipe Anderson | 37 | 32 | 5 |
de Vrij | 35 | 30 | 5 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Klose | 16 | 13 | 3 |
Parolo | 11 | 10 | 1 |
Candreva | 11 | 10 | 1 |
Felipe Anderson | 11 | 10 | 1 |
Mauri | 9 | 9 | - |
Djordjevic | 9 | 8 | 1 |
Let's talk about Brayan Perea
Brayan Andrés Vargas Perea was born in Cali, Colombia, on February 25, 1993. He is nicknamed "El Coco" (Coconut) due to his hairstyle.
He started playing football with his local club, Deportivo Cali. He then made his first team debut in 2011. Between 2011 and 2013 he played 54 league games for "Los Verdiblancos" and scored 11 goals.
In 2013 he came to Europe and joined Lazio in Serie A. The manager was Vladimir Petkovic for the first 17 games and then Edy Reja. Lazio finished 9th. Perea played 19 league games with 1 goal (Atalanta), 2 games in Coppa with 2 goals (Parma x2) and 6 in the Europa League with 2 goals (Legia Warsaw, Ludogorec). On August 8 Lazio lost the Italian Supercoppa to Juventus 0-4.
In August 2014 Perea was sent on loan to Perugia in Serie B. The manager was Andrea Camplone and Perea played 16 league games with 1 goal (Virtus Lanciano).
In January 2015 however, he was called back to Lazio, as striker Filip Djordjevic had suffered a serious injury and would be out for 3 months. The manager was Stefano Pioli and the Biancocelesti had an excellent season finishing 3rd (UCL preliminary round) and were runners up in the Coppa Italia (Juventus 1-2, a.e.t). Perea played 5 league games and 1 game in Coppa Italia. In August Lazio then failed to get into the Champions League group phase after losing to Bayer Leverkusen 1-3 on aggregate. On August 8 Lazio lost the Italian Supercoppa to Juventus 0-2.
A few days later, on August 13, Perea went to Troyes in France on loan. He played 13 games and scored 1 goal but Troyes were relegated to Ligue 2.
In August 2016 he joined Lugo in the Spanish Segunda Division. He played 13 league games for the "Albivermellos" (Red and Whites) plus one in the Copa del Rey.
In 2017 he returned to Lazio. The manager was now Simone Inzaghi but Perea never played before ending his contract by mutual consent in December 2018.
In January 2019 he returned to Colombia and signed for Independiente Santa Fe in the top flight. He played 11 league games with 1 goal and 5 domestic cup games.
In January 2020 he joined Temperley in the Argentinan second tier. He only played 5 league games for the "Gasoleros".
In 2020 he played in the United States for the Palm Beach Stars, in the United Premier Soccer League.
In 2021 he came back to Europe and chose north -west Bulgaria. He signed for Botev Vraca in the top division (Părva Liga) and has a contract until 2025. The Red and Greens finished 13th both in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Perea played 16 games for Colombia U20's and in 2013 won a South-America U20 Championship.
Perea is a striker. He is usually used on the right of the attacking line. At 1.89 and 77 kilos he is a physical player. He can use both feet and is good in the air. It is fair to say he has not had a great career. His peak was with Lazio in 2013-14 but then never played regularly at such levels again.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Europa League |
2013-14 | 27 (5) | 19 (1) | 2 (2) | 6 (2) |
2014-15 | 6 | 5 | 1 | - |
Total | 33 (5) | 24 (1) | 3 (2) | 6 (2) |
Sources
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