Easy win
An easy win for Lazio over a terrible Juventus
Also on this day: February 21, 2013: Lazio-Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-0 Europa League. With two first half goals Lazio wrap up tie without excessive difficulty. Club of the day: Borussia Mönchengladbach
The season so far
Playing football while elsewhere there was a World War cannot have been easy for the players nor for the fans. But the show must go on and there was a Serie A to be played. Lazio so far had had many ups and downs. They beat Juventus 5-3, Inter and Roma 3-1 but lost to Genoa 6-5, Livorno 4-2 and Bologna 4-0. There was not a lot of money, but manager Alessandro Popovich was trying to make it all work and he did have the great Silvio Piola on his side.
In Coppa Italia Lazio had reached the quarter finals after having beaten first Napoli and then Juventus, both away.
The match: Sunday, February 21, 1943, Stadio Benito Mussolini, Turin
The game looked like going Lazio’s way right from the very start with Aldo Puccinelli having a chance in the opening minutes. Juventus tried to move the ball around between the great Giuseppe Meazza and Vittorio Sentimenti III, but they could not out play the Biancocelesti today.
In the 16th minute Piola on the left with a spectacular acrobatic bicycle kick sent the ball into the middle of the box. Two Juventus defenders clashed in an attempt to get the ball, so Silvestro Pisa found himself with all the time in the world to make it 1-0.
Seven minutes later Lazio made it two. Luciano Ramella took a free kick but the ball came back to him. He promptly passed it to Piola who turned and shot. 2-0 for Lazio.
Everybody was waiting for a reaction from the Bianconeri, but nothing came. In the second half Lazio consolidated their lead with a one-two in eight minutes. In the 63rd minute Petr Manola sent the ball into the box, Puccinelli was quicker than the Juve defence and made it three. Eight minutes later another free kick for Lazio. Big whack by Salvatore Gualtieri and it was 4-0.
Juventus mustered up some courage and determination and reduced the deficit twice in four minutes. First Riza Lushta tapped the ball in after Alessandro Ferri had saved a Meazza shot on the line in the 77th minute and then in the 81st minute Sentimenti III scored thanks to a Lushta assist. But it was too late.
Who played for Juventus
Sentimenti IV, Foni, Rava, Depetrini, Parola, Locatelli, Sentimenti III, Varglien II, Meazza, Lushta, Magni.
Manager: Rosetta
Who played for Lazio
Gradella, Romagnoli II, Monza II, Gualtieri, Ramella, Ferri, Manola, Pisa I, Piola, Borici, Puccinelli
Manager: Popovic
Referee: Curradi
Goals: 16’ Pisa, 23’ Piola, 63’ Puccinelli, 71’ Gualtieri, 77’ Lushta, 81’ Sentimenti III
What happened next
Lots of goals scored but also lots of goals conceded. This is a good summary of Lazio’s 1942-43 season. Nothing exceptional but Lazio did have very little money and the war was not helping. After beating Juventus, the Biancocelesti did not do much apart from beating Milan. They won against strong teams but this was balanced with poor performances and defeats with weaker teams. Lazio finished 9th.
In the Coppa Italia, Lazio lost to Roma in the quarterfinals.
Ramella topped the appearances and played all the 33 matches. Top scorer was obviously Silvio Piola with 21 goals. This was his last season with Lazio.
Lazio 1942-43
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals Scored |
Serie A | 30 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 56 |
Coppa Italia | 3 | 2 | - | 1 | 6 |
Total | 33 | 12 | 8 | 13 | 62 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Ramella | 33 | 30 | 3 |
Flamini | 30 | 27 | 3 |
Puccinelli | 30 | 27 | 3 |
Gradella | 28 | 25 | 3 |
Fazio | 27 | 24 | 3 |
Monza | 27 | 24 | 3 |
Pisa | 27 | 25 | 2 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Piola | 21 | 21 | - |
Pisa | 9 | 8 | 1 |
Koenig | 8 | 6 | 2 |
Gualtieri | 6 | 5 | 1 |
Borici | 4 | 3 | 1 |
Manola | 4 | 4 | - |
Let’s talk about: Salvador (Salvatore) Gualtieri
Salvador Gualtieri, or Salvatore as he was known in Italy, was born in Buenos Aires on May 14, 1917.
He started playing football in Argentina for San Lorenzo, the team that Pope Francis supports. In March 1940 he travelled to Italy in the hope of finding a club that could have been interested in him. Lazio was, so he signed with the Biancocelesti but had to wait until the beginning of the 1940-41 season. In the meantime he could only play friendlies.
He was a very good midfielder. Tall, excellent technique, he had a great vision of the game. Gualtieri also had a cracking shot and was an excellent header of the ball. This allowed him to score lots of goals.
He arrived during World War II but unlike many of his compatriots, he stayed in Rome and was fundamental in the winning of the Roman War Championship in 1943-44. This tournament took place during the conflict among local Rome and Lazio Region clubs, since all the other tournaments had been suspended.
He stayed for 8 years with the club and played 223 times (159 in Serie A, 20 in the Southern Serie A-B Championship, 1 in the 1945-46 Post Championship, 8 in Coppa Italia and 26 in the Roman War Championship and 9 in other tournaments during the war years) and scored 24 goals (15 in Serie A, 3 in Coppa Italia and 5 in the Roman War Championship).
He was skipper for quite a number of years and even took on the role of player-manager for a few games in the 1945-46 season. When he quit football in 1949 he stayed and became assistant to Mario Sperone in the 1949-50 season. He then went back to Argentina but almost immediately moved to Brazil where together with his former Lazio team mate Luciano Ramella he started a coffee plantation.
In 1961 he came back to Rome and in the 1962-63 season he was assistant to Lazio manager Juan Carlos Lorenzo. He later was head trainer at Crotone from 1965 to 1967.
He died in Rome on December 18, 1998.
Lazio Career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Centre-South Serie A-B Champ. | Post Centre-South Champ. | Roman War Champ. | Coppa Italia | Other |
1940-41 | 31 (2) | 27 (2) | - | - | - | 4 | - |
1941-42 | 28 (6) | 26 (4) | - | - | - | 2 (2) | - |
1942-43 | 22 (6) | 20 (5) | - | - | - | 2 (1) | - |
1943-44 | 14 (1) | - | - | - | 13 (1) | - | 1 |
1944-45 | 21 (5) | - | - | - | 13 (5) | - | 8 |
1945-46 | 21 | - | 20 | 1 | - | - | - |
1946-47 | 36 (1) | 36 (1) | - | - | - | - | - |
1947-48 | 28 (1) | 28 (1) | - | - | - | - | - |
1948-49 | 22 (2) | 22 (2) | - | - | - | - | - |
Total | 223 (24) | 159 (15) | 20 | 1 | 26 (6) | 8 (3) | 9 |
Sources
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