Wonderful
Lazio dominate Milan, despite falling behind early, thanks to Klose and Parolo
Also on this day: January 24, 2016, Lazio Chievo 4-1. Two goals and an assist for Candreva as Lazio come from behind and thrash Chievo. Player of the day: Antonio Candreva
The season so far
Last season had not been good and Manager Vladimir Petkovic had been sacked half way through and replaced by veteran Edy Reja. The latter did not want to continue so Lazio had chosen Stefano Pioli for this year. A controversial decision. Pioli did not have an extensive CV but was considered to be a rising star.
As far as transfers were concerned, Lazio did their homework this year. New arrivals included right back Dusan Basta (Udinese), centre backs Stefan de Vrij (Feyenoord) and Santiago Gentiletti (San Lorenzo), left back Edson Braafheid (free transfer), midfielder Marco Parolo (Parma) and centre forward Filip Djordjevic (free transfer). Danilo Cataldi had also returned from his loan to Crotone.
Leaving Lazio were André Dias who had retired, Giuseppe Biava who had decided not to renew his contract plus a number of minor players such as Gael Kakuta, Emiliano Alfaro, Brayan Perea and Helger Postiga.
Lazio struggled in the beginning. In the third fixture, away at Genoa, Gentiletti got seriously injured and the Biancocelesti had difficulty in replacing him. But then things started to work out and Lazio ended the first part of the season in fifth place, two points from third. More importantly, one could see that Felipe Anderson was in the form of his life and had been devastating in some matches.
So at the end of the first half of the season Lazio were fifth, two points behind Napoli and Sampdoria, third.
The match: Saturday, January 24, 2015, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Milan started the game really well and went ahead after just four minutes. Jeremy Menez stole the ball from Dušan Basta on the half way line and ran forward, marked at a distance by Lorik Cana. Once in the box on the left he ran past the Lazio defender and beat Federico Marchetti.
The Biancocelesti reacted and in the 14th minute Stefano Mauri was just a fraction too late on an Antonio Candreva cross. In the 20th minute the Lazio winger again sent a perfect cross in for Miro Klose but the German goal fisher headed the ball wide. In the 25th minute, long pass from Mauri to Klose who had trouble controlling the ball but he saw Candreva arriving on the right, ball to the winger who tried to surprise Diego Lopez but the Spanish goalkeeper managed to parry into corner.
Lazio continued to attack in the first half but Milan were able to wall every attempt.
In the second half the Biancocelesti equalised immediately. In the 47th minute Klose-Mauri one-two on the right. The German crossed into the middle of the box and Marco Parolo beat the Milan defenders and volleyed the ball behind Diego Lopez. A well-deserved goal for Lazio who four minutes later made it two. Riccardo Montolivo, challenged by Lucas Biglia, tried to pass the ball back to Philippe Mexes, the former Roma player however was taking a nap, so Klose got to the ball and in front of the goalkeeper made no mistake. Lazio 2 Milan 1.
In the 65th minute Parolo had a powerful shot from quite far out but Diego Lopez parried into corner. In the 69th minute Stefano Pioli was forced to substitute Stefan de Vrij and in came the new signing Mauricio. In the 81st minute the Biancocelesti closed the match. Danilo Cataldi opened play to the right for Candreva who once in the box passed to Filip Djordjević who mistimed his shot, putting his foot on top of the ball instead of under it. His fumble however was then picked up by Parolo who scored his brace. Djordjević suffered a severe injury in the move and all the players were more concerned about his well-being than celebrating the goal.
The final event of the game was Mexes being sent off for violent conduct.
Good win for Lazio, bad defeat for Milan.
Who played for Lazio
Marchetti, Basta, de Vrij (69’ Mauricio), Cana, Radu, Cataldi, Biglia, Parolo, Candreva, Klose (73’ Djordjević (83’ Keita), Mauri
Manager: Pioli
Who played for Milan
Diego Lopez, Abate, Alex, Mexes, Armero, Poli (83' Muntari), Montolivo, Van Ginkel (55' Pazzini), Bonaventura (52' Cerci), Menez, El Shaarawy.
Substitutes: Abbiati, Agazzi, Zaccardo, Albertazzi, De Santis, Calabria, Essien, Suso.
Manager: F. Inzaghi.
Referee: Mazzoleni
Goals: 4’ Menez, 47’ Parolo, 51’ Klose, 81’ Parolo
What happened next
Lazio won eight consecutive league games between mid-February and mid-April. They had overtaken Roma and were second. Not only was the Champions League a possibility, but even a direct qualification (with second place) seemed possible. But then Lazio were re-overtaken and it was all down to the derby to determine who would be second. Unfortunately, Lazio lost and in the last game a point was needed at Napoli to secure third place. Napoli, on the other hand, needed to win to overtake Lazio. At the end of the first half Lazio were winning 2-0, but in the second Napoli equalised and were then awarded a controversial penalty. Gonzalo Higuain missed it, and towards the end Lazio scored with Eddy Onazi and Miro Klose to clinch the match and third place.
There were big celebrations. Lazio had played very well all year and possibly deserved even more than third place, but controversial refereeing decisions, especially in Lazio-Inter 1-2, plus exhaustion towards the end did not allow it to happen.
Lazio had a good run in Coppa Italia too. After beating Varese in December 3-0 (Abdoulay Konko, Djordjevic and Felipe Anderson), they won against Torino away 3-1 (Keita, Klose and Cristian Ledesma) and beat Milan at San Siro in the quarter finals thanks to a Lucas Biglia penalty. In the semi-final against Napoli Lazio drew the first leg at home 1-1 (Klose the scorer) and won in Naples 1-0 with a goal by Senad Lulic.
The final was at the Olimpico against Juventus. Lazio scored immediately with Stefan Radu but Juventus soon equalised. In the first half of extra time Djordjevic hit the woodwork twice with one shot and Juventus scored immediately after. Lazio were very unlucky.
The players with most appearances were Miroslav Klose and Marco Parolo (40). The German was obviously top scorer with 16 goals
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 Mauricio
Mauricio dos Santos Nascimento, better known as Mauricio, was born in Maua on September 20 1988. He started his football career with Palmeiras and in 2007 he was loaned to Clube de Regatas Brasil in the third tier of the Brazilian Championship. After a year he went back to Palmeiras, made 16 appearances and won the Campeonato Paulista. In 2009 he was sent away from the club for a fight in the changing rooms with Obina. Between 2010 and 2012 he played for Grêmio, Portuguesa, Vitória and Joinville, always on loan and in the second tier. In 2013, now a free agent, he signed for Sport Club do Recife and stayed a year with 21 appearances and one goal.
In June 2013 he signed for Sporting Lisbon and moved to Portugal. He played an excellent first year (31 appearances and 2 goals) and Sporting arrived second behind Benfica, hence qualifying for the Champions League. He impressed so much that in January Lazio bought him and he played his first game against Milan (see above) coming in for de Vrij. The Biancocelesti did very well, qualifying for the Champions League playoff and arriving third. The next year was not so good both for Lazio and for him personally. At the end of the season he was loaned to Spartak Moscow where he won his only championship. Spartak won the league 16 years after their last triumph.
Back at Lazio on September 17 he was re-integrated into the squad due to injuries to four central defenders. He made only one appearance before being loaned to Legia Warsaw. He made just three appearances with the Polish team but managed to win both the league and the national cup.
In October 2018 he ended his contract with Lazio and signed for the Malaysian club Johor Darul Ta’zim. In 2022 he joined Clube Náutico Capibaribe and won the Campeonato Pernambucano. In January 2023 he joined Chapecoense.
When he left Lazio he sent a message to everybody on social media.
“Every goodbye is always complicated. It's not easy to leave behind a story built with love and dedication. My journey with Lazio was marked by happy and difficult moments. Few athletes have the privilege of wearing the shirt of a football giant like that of Lazio. Few. Those who have this honour must make the most of every second in this club. I am very grateful to everyone for these years in Italy. I am grateful, in particular, to the fans who have always showered me with affection. I will miss everything: the country, the fans and the Lazio staff. I have never stopped honouring that shirt! In all the games and in all the training sessions I tried to give my best. I leave the club with my head held high and aware that I have always tried to do my best. I will always follow Lazio, even from afar! A big hug, Mauricio!”
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Champions League | Europa League |
Jan-Jun 2015 | 19 | 15 | 4 | - | - |
2015-16 | 36 | 24 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
2017-Feb 2018 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - |
Total | 56 | 40 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
Sources
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