The quiet before the storm
No winners in the Cup but the eyes were already on the big-league clash in a month's time
Also on this day: January 23, 1972, Lazio Genoa 2-0. An early Chinaglia penalty and a late goal by Massa give Lazio two points after a tough game. Player of the day: Giuseppe Massa
The season so far
Lazio went close to the scudetto the year before and were in the race again this year.
The charismatic manager Tommaso Maestrelli was still on the bench. There had been no major changes to the squad. Lazio had received plenty of offers for their best players: Luciano Re Cecconi (Torino), Franco Nanni (Fiorentina and Juventus) and Giorgio Chinaglia (Milan, Juventus, Napoli and Inter). The president, Umberto Lenzini, however, managed to resist and keep them all.
There had only been some lesser deals: in Fausto Inselvini (Brescia) and defender Sergio Borgo (Pro Patria), out Giacomo La Rosa (Palermo), Andrea Chini (Cavese), Giambattista Moschino (retired).
So basically, Lazio were giving the title another go with the same squad. The idea was that they had gone so close the previous season that this year with a little more experience they stood a realistic chance.
The pitch was so far proving them right. Lazio had won 9, drawn 3 and lost 2. They had beaten Roma 2-1 and only lost to Juventus and Torino. Lazio had 21 points, were top of the table and Chinaglia had scored 8 goals. A few days earlier Lazio had won 1-0 away at Foggia. The scudetto race was on, their main rivals being Juventus (as the previous year) and Napoli.
All eyes were already on the clash with Juventus on February 17. Today's game in Coppa Italia was part of the build-up and although both teams would make changes it could be important psychologically.
Lazio had started their cup campaign in August in the first group phase. The Biancocelesti had won 2 (Varese 2-0 and Novara 6-0, both at home), drawn 1 (the derby 0-0) and lost 1 (Brescia 0-2 away).
In the second group phase Lazio were with Juventus, Cesena and Palermo, all to be played home and away. Lazio had played Cesena away on December 12 and lost 1-2. There was the impression Lazio were clearly prioritising the league.
Today however no-one wanted to lose against league rivals Juventus.
Juventus had won the Scudetto the previous year, just pipping Lazio and Milan to the post in the last game of the season. The manager was Čestmír Vycpálek (Zdeněk Zeman's uncle).
This year the Czech had been confirmed. The main new arrivals were: defender Claudio Gentile (Varese), Giorgio Mastropasqua (Ternana-back from loan) and midfielder Fernando Viola (Mantova- back from loan).
Leaving were: midfielders Helmut Haller (Augusta) and Gianluigi Savoldi (Cesena-on loan). So, a pretty much unchanged squad.
In Serie A Juventus were 2nd behind Lazio despite having beaten the Biancocelesti 3-1 at home in October. The big return match was coming up in February but only a few days ago the Bianconeri had fallen 0-2 in Florence and were two points behind Lazio.
In September/October the Bianconeri had surprisingly been dumped out of the European Cup by Dynamo Dresden 3-4 on aggregate.
In November, Juventus had lost the Intercontinental Cup to Independiente 0-1 in Rome.
Today however was a Coppa Italia game, a sort of trial run for the league clash coming up. Juventus got through the first phase winning four out of four (Ascoli 3-1 and Arezzo 4-0, at home and SPAL 5-0 and Foggia 1-0, away). In the first match of the second phase they lost 0-2 away at Palermo.
Both teams had their eyes on the league title but today was still a big game. The winners of the group would go into the Coppa Italia final.
The match: Wednesday, January 23, 1974, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A cold, Wednesday 2.30 kick-off still attracted a decent 45,000 crowd to the Olimpico.
Both teams had several absences. Lazio were without Renzo Garlaschelli and Luciano Re Cecconi while Franco Nanni and Vincenzo D'Amico were on the bench. Juventus were missing Sandro Salvadore, Roberto Bettega, Franco Causio and Antonello Cuccureddu while Silvio Longobucco was on the bench. The Cup was appealing but the Campionato was more important.
The game started at a slow pace but it was Lazio who took the initiative. In the 7th minute Chinaglia shot wide, in the 25th Dino Zoff saved from Chinaglia and in the 26th Paolo Franzoni missed the target in a crowded area, from a Mario Frustalupi low cross.
Lazio's pressure gradually subsided and Juventus had two goals disallowed for offside. Both were by Jose Altafini, the second a header but on both occasions the linesman's flag was up. Halftime score Lazio 0 Juventus.
It was not a spectacular affair. Both sides were playing under rhythm and seemed keener not to get injured than going all out for a winner.
Maestrelli's decision to take off Mario Frustalupi for Nanni confirmed the impression.
The second half was similar to the first. Lazio attacked more but without fierce determination. In the 57th minute Giancarlo Oddi wasted a chance set up by Chinaglia and in the 63rd "Long John" shot wide from a difficult angle.
In the 70th minute Vincenzo D'Amico replaced Pierpaolo Manservisi in an attempt to bring more quality to Lazio's game.
Juventus meanwhile had a few corners and had their only chance in the 71st minute when Pietro Anastasi, teed up by Viola, shot just wide.
In the 73rd minute came Lazio's last but biggest chance. Ferruccio Mazzola blasted an excellent shot towards goal but Dino Zoff pulled off a good save and put the ball into corner.
The game then petered out for a goalless draw. The result probably satisfied the visitors more than Lazio, as the Bianconeri had the home cup fixture on March 27 still to come. On this afternoon's performance however neither side looked likely to progress to the final. It was not a question of quality, as they were the best two teams in the country, but rather of priorities and desire.
Who played for Lazio
Pulici, Petrelli, Martini, Wilson, Oddi, Inselvini, Franzoni, Mazzola II, Chinaglia, Frustalupi (46' Nanni), Manservisi (70' D'Amico),
Substitutes: Moriggi, Polentes, Borgo
Manager: Maestrelli
Who played for Juventus
Substitutes: Piloni, Longobucco, Maggiora, Musiello
Manager: Vycpálek
Referee: Bernardis
What happened next
Lazio won the next game 1-0 at home against Palermo but then drew 1-1 at home to Cesena. At this point Lazio started playing with more and more reserves and lost the last two matches away 0-3 to Juventus and 0-2 to Palermo. Lazio were thus eliminated from the domestic cup.
In the league however, it was a different story. Lazio would go on to win their first historic league title. On the 12th May 1974 Lazio were proclaimed Campioni d'Italia!
Just under a month after today's cup encounter came the crunch game at home to Juventus. It ended in a 3-1 triumph for Lazio (Garlaschelli and twice Chinaglia) and this was a first definite turning point of the season.
On March 31 Lazio also won the return derby, coming from behind to beat Roma 2-1 (Chinaglia, D'Amico).
Another key win came in a home game against Verona on April 14 when, 1-2 down at halftime, Lazio stayed on the pitch waiting eagerly for the second half and ended up 4-2 winners. With five games to go Lazio had a four-point lead on Juventus.
Lazio then earned a good away point against Milan and beat Genoa at home 1-0 with a Garlaschelli winner.
Despite losing to Torino on May 5 (only team to beat Lazio twice that season) a week later, on May 12, Lazio came into the penultimate game of the season knowing a win would give them the scudetto.
They beat Foggia 1-0 with a Chinaglia penalty and for the first time in their history were Italian Champions!
Unfortunately, Lazio never got to play the European Cup as they were banned for the brawl between players and the crowd trouble in the UEFA Cup game against Ipswich Town in November 1973.
Juventus too crashed out of the Coppa Italia. The Bianconeri drew the next two home games (Cesena and Palermo both 1-1) so the next two wins (Lazio 3-0 at home and Cesena 1-0 away) were not enough to get them through. In the end it was Palermo, despite being in Serie B, who topped the group and went into the Coppa Italia final. The Rosanero then lost to Bologna in Rome but only on penalties.
Juventus finished 2nd in the league but by their standards it was a poor season.
Lazio 1973-74
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 30 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 45 |
Coppa Italia | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
UEFA Cup | 4 | 2 | - | 2 | 8 |
Total | 44 | 23 | 10 | 11 | 63 |
Top five appearances (Complete Player Statistics)
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
42 | 30 | 8 | 4 | |
42 | 30 | 8 | 4 | |
42 | 30 | 8 | 4 | |
42 | 30 | 8 | 4 | |
40 | 30 | 6 | 4 |
Top five goalscorers (Complete Player Statistics)
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
Giorgio Chinaglia | 34 | 24 | 4 | 6 |
14 | 10 | 2 | 2 | |
Franco Nanni | 2 | 2 | - | - |
2 | 2 | - | - | |
Luciano Re Cecconi | 2 | 2 | - | - |
Let's talk about Luciano Spinosi
Luciano Spinosi was born in Rome on May 9, 1950.
At ten years old he was run over by a car and broke his left leg. Before the accident he had been left-footed but after he started playing with his right foot and would do so for his whole career.
He started his youth career with local side Tevere Roma but in 1967, at 17, he joined AS Roma. Spinosi's brother was in the Lazio youth academy but his father, a Lazio fan himself, had a falling out with one of the directors and as a result took his younger son, Luciano, to play for Roma.
He stayed three years with the Giallorossi, playing 37 league games and scoring 3 goals (Pisa, Lazio, Sampdoria). In his first season he only played once under Oronzo Puglise and Roma finished 10th. In his second he played 12 league games and 5 in Coppa Italia under Helenio Herrera and Roma finished 8th but won the Coppa Italia. In his third, still under Herrera, he played 25 league games, 4 in Coppa Italia, 8 in the Cup Winners Cup and 6 in the Anglo-Italian Cup and Italo-English League and Roma finished 10th.
In 1970 he joined Juventus where he would stay for eight seasons. He played 138 league games with 1 goal (Vicenza). In his time with Juventus he suffered several serious injuries but he won 5 league titles and a UEFA Cup ('77). His managers were initially Armando Picchi, then Čestmír Vycpálek for four seasons, Carlo Parola for two and Giovanni Trapattoni for two. The Bianconeri went close to the European Cup but lost 0-1 to Cruyff's Ajax in 1972.
In 1978 he returned to Roma for other four seasons. In his second stint he played 67 league games with 1 goal (Milan), 8 in Coppa Italia and 4 in Europe (CWC) with 1 goal (Ballymena Utd). His managers were Gustavo Giagnoni /Ferruccio Valcareggi in the first season and then Nils Liedholm for the next three. Roma finished 10th, 6th, 2nd and 3rd. The Giallorossi won the Coppa Italia twice ('80, '81).
In 1982 Spinosi joined Verona. The Scaligeri had a good season under Osvaldo Bagnoli and finished 4th (they would be 1st in '85) and also were runners-up in the Coppa Italia (Juventus 2-3 on aggregate). Spinosi played every league game, 30 plus 6 in Coppa Italia and 4 in the Mitropa Cup with 2 goals (Galenika Zemun, Vasas).
In 1983 he joined Milan. The manager was first Ilario Castagner (1-24) and then Italo Galbiati (25-30) and the Rossoneri finished 8th. Spinosi played 18 league games and 6 in Coppa Italia.
His last club was Cesena in 1984-85. The "Cavalluccio" was in serie B and finished 9th. The manager was Adriano Buffoni and Spinosi played 22 league games and 5 in Coppa Italia.
At International level he won 19 Italy caps and played all three games in the 1974 World Cup. He also played 3 games for the U21's.
At 35 he then retired but stayed in the football world.
He went into coaching. He started with the Roma Primavera (U19's) from 1985 to 1989.
In February 1989 he was manager of Roma's first team for four matches (D2, L2). Angelo Sormani was manager with Nils Liedholm as T.D before and after.
Spinosi then returned to the U19's for another five years. The young Giallorossi won the league in 1990, the prestigious Viareggio tournament in 1991 and the Coppa Italia in 1994.
In 1994-95 he was appointed manager of Lecce in Serie B. He only lasted 11 games (W0, D6, L5) before Edy Reja took over.
In 1995-96 he had a spell with Ternana between managers Massimo Silva and then Danilo Pierini.
In 1996 he started his collaboration with Sven-Goran Eriksson. He became the Swede's assistant at Sampdoria and the Blucerchiati finished 6th.
The following year when Eriksson became Lazio manager Spinosi joined him in Rome. For three highly successful years he was Lazio’s assistant manager. Lazio won a Scudetto, the Coppa Italia twice, the Italian Supercoppa twice, a European Cup Winners Cup and a European Super Cup. In January 2001 when Eriksson left Spinosi finished as assistant manager but continued to work with Lazio until 2004.
In 2007 from March to October he was assistant manager to Fernando Orsi at Livorno in Serie A. The Amaranto finished 11th but the following season Orsi was sacked in October.
Spinosi was a solid defender. He is 1.82 and strong physically. He was a classic man-to-man marker of the 70's and early 80's. He once told a funny anecdote about his playing days, "The man I was marking said Luciano it's cold on this side of the field, I'm going to play in the sunny part. Will you come with me? Of course, I answered. Good, so let's go, he said."
He played 300 games in Serie A and won 5 Scudetti, 3 Italian Cups and a UEFA Cup.
At Lazio he is remembered for his work as assistant to Eriksson in the glory years. Laziali can still see the image of the two elegant managers in their immaculate grey coats shaking hands on the bench after a goal or victory and there was certainly plenty to celebrate.
Sources
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