Lazio start promotion run up
Lazio battle hard on Adriatic. Two goals up at halftime, they resist Sambenedettese attempted comeback and clinch important promotion points
Also on this day: February 7, 2019, Lazio Empoli 1-0. Despite missing Immobile and Luis Alberto, all Lazio need to win is a Caicedo penalty. Player of the day: Pedro Neto
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had dramatically avoided relegation to Serie C despite starting the season with a docking of nine points (still two points for a win). Lazio earned the right to a three-team playoff by beating Vicenza with a late Giuliano Fiorini goal. Then in the playoffs Lazio first lost to Taranto 0-1 but then beat Campobasso with a Fabio Poli goal and survived, possibly literally as a club too. The manager was Eugenio Fascetti.
This year Fascetti stayed on and Lazio had promotion ambitions. There had been a few changes to the squad. Arriving were: keeper Silvano Martina (Torino), defenders Paolo Beruatto (Torino), midfielders Ciro Muro (Napoli), Gabriele Savino (Vicenza), Paolo Di Canio (Ternana-end of loan) plus forwards Giuseppe Galderisi (Milan -on loan) and Paolo Monelli (Fiorentina).
Leaving were some of the -9 heroes: keeper Giuliano Terraneo (Lecce), defenders Ernesto Calisti (Fiorentina), Daniele Filisetti (Venezia-Mestre), Gabriele Podavini (Genoa) plus forwards Giuliano Fiorini (Venezia -Mestre), Fabio Poli (Bologna) and Paolo Mandelli (Inter-end of loan). In the autumn, defender Giorgio Magnocavallo also left (Barletta). So, a large chunk of Lazio history, but life goes on.
At the end of the first half of the season, the Biancocelesti had won 5, drawn 11 and lost 3, so on 21 points. Lazio were joint 5th with Lecce and Catanzaro but only two points from 3rd place Cremonese. The last 7 games had all been draws (five nil-nil), the most recent 3-3 away at Taranto. Lazio needed to change pace if they wanted to keep up in the promotion race.
In Coppa Italia, in August /September Lazio had gone out in the group phase. They won 2 (Lecce 1-0, casertana 2-0, both at home) and lost 3 (Pisa and Juventus both on penalties and Catanzaro 0-5).
Sambenedettese had finished 14th the previous season, under former Lazio Roberto Clagluna (1970-1983). The Rossoblu had won one and drawn one against Lazio.
This season the manager was Angelo Domenghini (Scudetto winner as a player with Inter twice and Cagliari). Their main players were keeper Fabrizio Ferron, defender Fabio Marangon (Scudetto winner with Verona), midfielders Massimo Ficcadenti, Carlo Salvioni, Lucio Nobile, Claudio Luperto, Andrea Galassi plus forward Paolo Alberto Faccini (Scudetto winner with Roma), Massimo Ginelli, Egidio Pirozzi and Roberto Di Nicola (previous year's top scorer with 11 league goals). Sambenedettese also had two former Lazio players, defender Marco Saltarelli (1982-83) and Paolo Mandelli (1986-87)
So far, "Samba" had won 3, drawn 11 and lost 5 (including Lazio 0-2 on debut), hence were on 17 points. The week earlier the Marchigiani had lost 2-3 away at Udine.
In the Coppa Italia, in the late summer, the Rossoblu had been eliminated. They had won 2 (Empoli 2-1 at home, Centese on penalties) and lost 3 (Avellino 0-3 at home, Piacenza 1-2 away and Cremonese on penalties at home).
An unpredictable game today on the Adriatic coast. Lazio clearly superior but the Romans had not won since November 29 and the home side were keen to pull away from the relegation zone with a prestigious scalp.
The match: Sunday, February 7, 1988, Stadio Riviera delle Palme, San Benedetto del Tronto
A 10,000 crowd was present at the little Riviera delle Palme stadium (13.000 capacity).
Both sides started off cautiously. Lazio had more possession but the hosts defended well.
Without much warning a goal came in the 19th minute. Raimondo Marino found Paolo Beruatto on the right wing who crossed into the area where Paolo Monelli and Roberto Andreoli jumped up but the Lazio striker got the better and headed home. From the replay however, it appeared the defender had deflected it too. Anyway Sambenedettese 0 Lazio 1.
In the 35th minute Lazio doubled their lead. Ciro Muro took a crisp freekick from the vertex of the box, Monelli went for a touch and missed but the ball then ended up in the back of the net. Sambenedettese 0 Lazio 2.
The "Samb" could have pulled one back before halftime but Faccini missed the target when he had only Martina to beat. Halftime Sambenedettese 0 Lazio 2. A slightly flattering score line for Lazio but the Biancocelesti had taken their chances.
The hosts made a change during the break and brought on Massimo Cardelli for midfielder Ficcadenti. They also came back on a transformed team and attacked furiously. Lazio were pegged back in their own half and sometimes area. In the 47th minute Martina had to fly to stop a Mandelli shot and in the 48th minute Ugo Bronzini jiggled his way into the box and shot from the penalty spot but again Martina saved.
In the 53rd minute Lazio replaced Domenico Caso with a more defensive midfielder, Gabriele Savino.
Lazio realised they could not simply defend for the whole half and occasionally ventured into attack. In the 60th minute an Antonio Elia Acerbis shot from a favourable position was blocked by Andrea Galassi and then Muro failed to find the target on the rebound. Then a minute later a Giuseppe Galderisi diving header, from a Savino cross, was acrobatically saved by Ferron.
In the 70th minute Sambenedettese were awarded a penalty. It was Bronzini again who caused havoc in the Lazio area where Muro unbalanced him with an exaggerated movement of his hip and the referee pointed to the spot kick. Faccini gave Martina no chance. Sambenedettese 1 Lazio 2.
In the last twenty minutes Lazio had to dig deep. In the 75th minute they threw on 20-year-old youngster Federico Agostinelli for his debut (it would remain his one and only appearance ever for Lazio) replacing Muro.
The game became increasingly tense (six yellow cards) but Lazio managed, not without difficulty, to clinch the two points.
An important win for Lazio who moved up to 4th. They had been clinical and then resisted Samb's second half onslaught showing strong character and a determination to reach their final objective.
Who played for Sambenedettese
Ferron, Nobile, Andreoli, D. Ferrari, Bronzini, Ficcadenti (46' Cardelli), Mandelli, Galassi, Luperto, Sinigaglia, Faccini
Substitutes: Bonaiuti, Paciscopi, Vecchiola
Manager: Domenghini
Who played for Lazio
Martina, Marino, Beruatto, Esposito, Gregucci, Pin, Caso (53' Savino), Acerbis, Galderisi, Muro (75' F. Agostinelli), Monelli
Substitutes: Salafia, Biagioni, Nigro
Manager: Fascetti
Referee: Frigerio
Goals: 19' Monelli, 35' Muro, 70' Faccini (pen).
What happened next
Lazio improved enough in the return fixtures to clinch promotion in 3rd place. After the Sambenedettese game Lazio won 9, drew 6 and lost 3. On June 19, in an Olimpico already under renovation for Italia '90, the Biancocelesti beat Taranto 3-1 to finally return to the big time after three years in the "purgatory" of Serie B. Top scorer was Paolo Monelli with 14 goals (13 in B).
Sambenedettese finished 14th again. After Lazio they won 2, drew 11 and lost 5. The Rossoblu ended up two points above the drop zone, in those days it was still possible to "draw" yourself to safety. Top scorer was Di Nicola with 11 league goals.
Serie B was won by Bologna ahead of Lecce, Lazio and Atalanta. The relegation slots were for Arezzo, Triestina (who were also docked 5 points) and Modena.
Lazio 1987-88
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie B | 38 | 15 | 17 | 6 | 42 |
Coppa Italia | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
Total | 43 | 17 | 19 | 7 | 46 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
Monelli | 42 | 37 | 5 |
Marino | 41 | 36 | 5 |
Martina | 41 | 36 | 5 |
Pin | 41 | 36 | 5 |
Beruatto | 40 | 35 | 5 |
Savino | 40 | 35 | 5 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
Monelli | 14 | 13 | 1 |
Savino | 10 | 8 | 2 |
Muro | 4 | 4 | - |
Gregucci | 3 | 3 | - |
Rizzolo | 3 | 3 | - |
Let's talk about Ciro Muro
Ciro Muro was born in Naples, on March 9, 1964.
He grew up in the Napoli youth sector and played one game (Napoli-Roma 1-2) in the 1983-84 season under Pietro Santin and then Rino Marchesi from February. Napoli finished 11th.
In 1984-85 he was sent to Monopoli on loan in Serie C1. The manager was Mario Russo and the "Gabbiano" (Seagull) finished 5th. Muro played 34 league games with 5 goals.
In 1985-86 he joined Pisa on loan in Serie A. The manager was Vincenzo Guerini and the Nerazzurri were relegated. They did however win the Mitropa Cup (Debrecen 2-0). Muro played 29 league games with 4 goals (Lecce, Fiorentina home and away, Avellino), 7 games in Coppa Italia with 2 goals (Piacenza Cremonese), and 2 games in the Mitropa Cup.
In 1986-87 he was back at Napoli in Serie A. The manager was Ottavio Bianchi and Napoli won the Scudetto and the Coppa Italia. He played alongside the great Diego Maradona and former Lazio Bruno Giordano. Muro played 11 league games with 1 goal (Ascoli), 13 games in Coppa Italia with 4 goals (in final first leg vs Atalanta, plus Vicenza, Brescia, Cagliari) and 2 games in Coppa UEFA.
In 1987-88 he joined Lazio in Serie B. The Biancocelesti had promotion hopes under Eugenio Fascetti and they materialised on June 19 when Lazio clinched their place back in Serie A. Muro played 37 league games with 4 goals (Triestina, Taranto, Sambenedettese, Bari) and 1 game in Coppa Italia.
Back in Serie A, Fascetti left over market strategy divergencies and Giuseppe Materazzi arrived. Lazio had a difficult season but ultimately survived with the added bonus of winning a local derby after ten years, with a Paolo Di Canio winner. Muro played 24 league games and 10 in Coppa Italia.
That was practically the end of his top-level career. He then started a nomadic career taking him over half of southern Italy.
In 1989-90 he was at Cosenza in Serie B. The "Lupi della Sila" finished 14th first under Gigi Simoni (Lazio 1985-86) and then Gianni Di Marzio. Muro played 35 league games with 2 goals (Padova, Foggia). His teammates included Massimo Storgato (Lazio 1984-85).
In 1990-91he spent a season at Messina in Serie B. The Giallorossi finished 9th under Giuseppe Materazzi (1-33) and then the duo Antonio Colomban and Pietro Ruisi (34-38). Muro played 30 league games with 1 goal (Ancona) and 3 games in Coppa Italia. One of his teammates was Igor Protti (Lazio 1996-97, 1998).
Between 1991 and 1993 he was at Taranto in Serie B. The Ionici finished 16th and 19th (relegated). The managers were Walter Nicoletti (1-10) and Giampiero Vitali (11-38) the first year and Vitali (1-6) and Giuseppe Caramanno the second. Muro played 71 league games with 9 goals. His teammates included Luca Brunetti (Lazio 1986-88) and Giancarlo Camolese (Lazio 1986-88).
From 1993 to 1995 he played with Ischia Isolaverde in Serie C1. The isolani finished 10th and 16th. Muro played 58 league games with 1 goal. One of his teammates was Giovanni Martusciello (current assistant manager to Maurizio Sarri at Lazio).
In 1995 -96 he was with Albanova (Casale del Principe - Caserta) in C2. The Leoni finished 5th and he played 31 games with 6 goals.
In 1996 he played 8 league games for Matera in Serie C2 but then returned to Albanova, playing 23 league games with 4 goals and finishing 11th.
In 1997-98 he played for Sant'Anastasia (Napoli) in the amateur C.N.D (5th tier). The Biancoblu finished 6th but Muro only played 3 league games with 1 goal.
In 1998-99 he was with Casertana in C.N.D. He played 9 league games with 1 goal as player-manager.
Between 1999-2001 he spent two seasons with Viribus Unitis (Somma Vesuviana-Naples) as player manager in Promozione (6th tier). He played 42 league games with 2 goals.
In 2001 he had brief spells with Pomigliano Est (Naples) in Promozione with 8 games and 1 goal and then Manduria (Taranto) in Promozione, only playing two games.
At 37 he retired and continued with coaching.
In 2003-04 he was back at Pomigliano in Serie D. The Granata were first relegated and then readmitted to Serie D for the following season.
In 2009 he went back to Napoli to work in the youth sector and stayed four years.
In 2013-14 he coached Mariano Keller (Naples) in Serie D.
In 2014-15 he was in charge of Puteolana (Pozzuoli-Naples) in serie D. The Granata were relegated and went bust.
In 2020-21 he was with Frattese (Frattamaggiore-Naples) youth sector and in 2021-22 he had a spell with the Giugliano (Naples) youth sector.
He is currently manager of Scafatese (Scafati-Salerno) in Eccelenza Campania (5th tier). He also has his own football academy, Sc Ciro Muro.
Ciro Muro was a talented player. He was an attacking midfielder, 1.73 and 70 kilos. His speciality were set pieces and free kicks. He was considered a promising player at the beginning of his career but he never really fulfilled his potential. His peak was playing with Maradona and winning a Scudetto with Napoli.
At Lazio he won a promotion and had a decent first year. His second was more disappointing and he was then let go. At Lazio his infallible free kicks were legendary but only in training where apparently, he really was a mini-Maradona...
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances | Serie A | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
1987-88 | 38 (4) | - | 37 (4) | 1 |
1988-89 | 34 | 25 | - | 9 |
Total | 72 (4) | 25 | 37 (4) | 10 |
Sources
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