Game 5, Europa League Group Phase
Thursday, November 28, 2024
Stadio Olimpico
Lazio Ludogorets Razgrad 0-0
An incredible decision from the referee denies Lazio a blatant penalty which does not help the Biancoceleste cause on a difficult night.
The team
Marco Baroni put in the mid week team hence welcome Christos Mandas, Samuel Gigot, Patric, Loum Tchaouna and Tijani Noslin coming back from his rather harsh three-match suspension.
First half
Lazio had terrible trouble breaking down the Ludogorets defensive wall. The Bulgarians defended in a 6-3-1 formation and as we have seen so far, the Biancocelesti always have problems when facing teams that are so defensive. Lazio’s first chance of the evening arrived in the 23rd minute when Patric sent a long ball over the opponents defence, Pedro got to it first and ran inside the box, he tried to go round the keeper but the ball went too far. He recovered it close to the byline, passed back to Tchaouna who crossed too hard into the middle, Noslin tried to make the most of the bad pass but his volley went out.
In the 37th minute Boulaye Dia had a chance but his shot was well saved by Hendrik Bonmann. The Senegalese forward had another opportunity three minutes later when the defence fumbled after a Luca Pellegrini cross, he got to the stray ball and tried a shot but Bonmann was ready for him.
Second half
In the interval Baroni changed three: out went Dia, Pellegrini and Tchaouna, in came Taty Castellanos, Manuel Lazzari and Gustav Isaksen.
Despite the changes Lazio were continuing to have problems in creating chances. In the 58th minute a Pedro shot was parried, in the 63rd Lazzari had a chance but his volley went into the stands. Then in the 72nd minute the potential match changer. Lazzari crossed into the box from the right, the ball reached Erick Markus on the other side but he could not control it, Isaksen went for it, anticipated him and was fouled. Obvious penalty but the ref was not convinced. Anyway, no problem because Var asked him to review it. He went to the monitor, looked at the initial contact between the two players (a slight step on foot) and stuck to his initial decision. Absurd. The possible step on foot was irrelevant since Isaksen was brought down not by that but by the subsequent tripping up. But when a ref is incompetent, not even Var can come to the rescue.
Lazio continued to attack but could not break down the Bulgarian wall. In the 86th minute Matteo Guendouzi tried a shot from outside the box which hit the top of the crossbar. That put a further dampener on the match. Game over.
A pity, Lazio had the chance to win and make it five wins out of five in this Europa League but the injuries to Dia and Pellegrini plus the absurd decision by the ref on the blatant penalty certainly did not help matters. The Biancocelesti are still top of the table though now in the company of Athletic Bilbao and Eintracht Frankfurt.
Who played for Lazio
Mandas, Marusic, Patric, Gigot, Pellegrini (46' Lazzari), Vecino (60' Rovella), Guendouzi, Tchaouna (46' Isaksen), Dia (46' Castellanos), Pedro (79' Zaccagni), Noslin
Substitutes: Provedel, Furlanetto, Gila, Romagnoli, Milani, Dele-Bashiru, Di Tommaso
Manager: Baroni
Who played for Ludogorets Razgrad
Bonmann, Witry, Kurtulus, Almeida, Son (81' Camara), Duarte, Naressi, Gropper (81' Yordanov), Chochev (90' Piotrowski), Marcus, Rwan Seco (68' Duah)
Substitutes: Hristov, Padt, Terziev, Rusev, Verdon
Manager: Jovićević
Referee: Strukan (Croatia)
Booked: Pellegrini (L), Witry (LR), Tchaouna (L), Gigot (L), Rovella (L), Patric (L), Naressi (LR), Isaksen (L)
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