A Jugovic cracker gives Lazio first blood in Madrid
A superb first half strike by the Serb allows Lazio to survive and win in a fiery Calderon hell hole.
Also on this day: March 31, 1974, Roma Lazio 1-2. Lazio come from behind to beat rivals for the fourth time in a row and continue title dream. Lazio Legend of the day: Tommaso Maestrelli
The season so far
The previous season had seen Dino Zoff take over from Zdenek Zeman in January and earn a 4th place finish. Giuseppe Signori's 15 goals had helped Lazio conquer a UEFA Cup place and to a positive season.
This year, however, there had been big changes. Lazio had a new manager in Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson, who arrived in the summer from Sampdoria, while Signori, the goal scoring machine and fan's idol, had gone in the opposite direction in the autumn and joined Sampdoria.
There had been other major changes to the squad too. In had come goalkeeper Marco Ballotta (Reggiana), full back Giuseppe Pancaro (Cagliari), midfielders Matias Almeyda (Sevilla) and Vladimir Jugovic (Juventus) plus forwards Alen Boksic (back from Juventus) and Roberto Mancini (Sampdoria).
The players who left were South-African defender Mark Fish (Bolton), Roberto Baronio (on loan to Vicenza), Alessandro Iannuzzi (Lecce) and forwards Marco Di Vaio (Salernitana) and Igor Protti (Napoli on loan).
As mentioned, in the autumn market session club hero Signori and Renato Buso (Piacenza) also said goodbye.
This season was going well for Lazio. They had beaten Roma a record 4 times in a single season. In the league the Biancocelesti were in third position and challenging for the title. They were unbeaten in the last 16 games. Lazio were also in the final of Coppa Italia. After eliminating Fidelis Andria (3-0, 3-2), Napoli (4-0, 0-3), Roma (4-1, 2-1) and Juventus (1-0, 2-2) they had qualified for a two-legged final against Milan. The first had gone to the Rossoneri 1-0, with an 89th minute George Weah winner but the return match was in Rome on April 29.
Today in Spain however was a European UEFA Cup match, the first leg of the semi-final. Lazio had got this far by knocking out Portuguese Vitória Guimarães (4-0, 2-1), Russian Rotor (0-0, 3-0), Austrian Rapid Vienna (2-0, 1-0) and French Auxerre (1-0, 2-2).
Atletico Madrid had won the league two years earlier in 1996 but this season they were not doing so well. They lay 8th in the Liga and were knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Real Zaragoza. The "Colchoneros" (The Mattress Makers") manager was Serbian Radomir Antic (he would become the only person to manage Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Barcelona).
This however was a UEFA Cup tie. The "Indios" had reached the semi final eliminating; English Leicester City (2-1, 2-0), Greek PAOK (5-2, 4-4), Croatian Zagreb (1-1,1-0) and English Aston Villa (1-0, 1-2 - so on away goals rule).
The Madrileños had some good players; Paulo Futre, Milinko Pantic, Kiko, Juan Vizcaíno, José Mari, José Luis Caminero to name just a few. In attack they had big Italian striker Christian Vieri who was scoring regularly.
The semi-final was predicted to be balanced. A strong, more experienced, but not at their best Spanish side, against an ambitious and in-form Italian side.
The match: Tuesday, March 31, 1998, Estadio Vicente Calderón, Madrid
A noisy, passionate, sold out Calderon stadium welcomed Lazio in Madrid but the Biancocelesti had a good travelling contingent supporting them.
Lazio were without suspended captain Alessandro Nesta and injured Pancaro and Paul Okon while the hosts were missing Kiko, also due to suspension.
Atletico were hoping to salvage a disappointing season tonight and predictably surged forward, pushed by the partisan crowd. The Spaniards attacked vigorously, Carlos Aguilera and Pantic were particularly active. Lazio however did not panic and defended well.
In fact the first real goal scoring chance came Lazio’s way. In the 12th minute a Pavel Nedved counterattack setup Diego Fuser, who galloped 30 metres before pulling his lob just wide.
That was the game pattern, Atletico attacking furiously and Lazio trying to control and strike on the break.
Between the 25th and 30th minute the "Colchoneros" had two chances with Vieri, first with a header and then a shot.
In the 33rd minute the scoreline changed. A brilliant backheel by Boksic reached Jugovic. The Serb advanced ten metres and blasted a low shot from about 20 metres out. It was of surgical accuracy and settled in the right hand corner of the net. Atletico 0 Lazio 1.
As one could have expected, "Atleti" only intensified their raids on the Lazio area. The hosts had chances with Vizcaino, Jordi Lardin and Vieri but Luca Marchegiani was never caught off guard. Half time Atletico 0 Lazio 1.
The hosts had more possession and shots but Lazio were compact, well-organized and dangerous on the break.
The second half began again with Atletico going forward head down. Marchegiani made good saves on Vieri and Lardin and then an outstanding one on a Santi header. Lazio still threatened occasionally, as in the 67th minute when Fuser had a close range shot blocked by José Molina.
The hosts continued to pile on the pressure and went extremely close to equalising with a Pantic freekick which sailed just wide. Lazio had spaces on the break to definitely close the tie again with Fuser but were equally overjoyed with the 1-0 away victory when the English referee Durkin blew for full-time. Atletico Madrid 0 Lazio 1.
An intense, hard fought battle ending with a precious and prestigious win. Lazio had shown determination, balance, steady nerves and good tactical organization resulting in a clinical win.
The return leg promised to be another battle but Lazio had a one goal and home crowd advantage to look forward to. The game would be played without match winner Jugovic, Andrei and José Luis Caminero, all booked tonight and due for a one game suspension.
Who played for Atletico Madrid
Molina, Aguilera, Santi, Andrei, Prodan, Beijbl, Caminero, Pantic (86' Paunovic), Vizcaino (57' José Mari), Lardin (72' Nimny), Vieri
Substitutes: Jaro, Fede, Geli, Christian Diaz
Manager: Antic
Who played for Lazio
Marchegiani, Grandoni, Chamot, Negro, Favalli, Fuser, Venturin, Jugovic, Nedved, Boksic (66' Casiraghi), Mancini (78' Gottardi)
Manager: Eriksson
Referee: Dunkin (England)
Goal: 33' Jugovic
What happened next
Two weeks later, on April 14, at the Olimpico in front of a 40,000 crowd Lazio got the job done. They managed to block the Spaniards attempts to overturn the away score and, thanks in particular to an outstanding Alessandro Nesta, obtained a 0-0 draw. A result which was enough to earn Lazio their first ever historic European Final.
The final unfortunately saw a tired Lazio succumb to Ronaldo's Inter 3-0 at the Parc des Princes in Paris.
In the league, five days after the Calderon victory, Lazio lost 1-0 at home to Juventus and ended their title hopes. They then collapsed and got only one point in the last 6 games and finished 7th.
It was in the Coppa Italia however that Lazio lived their finest hour. On the 29th of April the return match in Rome seemed to be heading in Milan's favour too when a Demetrio Albertini freekick put the Rossoneri 1-0 up just after half time. A stirring second half performance however turned the final around. Three goals in ten minutes by Guerino Gottardi, Jugovic (penalty) and captain Nesta gave Lazio a dramatic 3-1 victory and after 30 years gave the Biancocelesti long awaited silverware.
So, a European Final, 4 derby wins and a domestic cup after thirty years definitely made it a season to cherish.
Atletico Madrid's season ended with a disappointing 7th place in the Liga. A consolation was having Christian Vieri win the "Pichichi" top goal scorer award with 24 goals (29 in total). The following year however, Vieri would be playing for Lazio. The semi-final decider, Jugovic, on the other hand would be playing for Atletico Madrid.
Lazio 1997-98
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 34 | 16 | 8 | 10 | 53 |
Coppa Italia | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 22 |
UEFA Cup | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 16 |
Total | 55 | 30 | 12 | 13 | 91 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
Mancini | 52 | 34 | 8 | 10 |
Fuser | 51 | 32 | 9 | 10 |
Marchegiani | 51 | 33 | 8 | 10 |
Nesta | 49 | 30 | 9 | 10 |
Negro | 47 | 28 | 10 | 9 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
Nedved | 15 | 11 | 2 | 2 |
Boksic | 15 | 10 | 5 | - |
Fuser | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 |
Signori | 10 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
Mancini | 9 | 5 | 1 | 3 |
Let’s talk about Vladimir Jugovic
Vladimir Jugovic was born in Trstenik (Serbia), on August 30, 1969. He is of Serbian nationality.
He is a product of the Red Star Belgrade youth sector. He made his debut in 1989 and was then sent on loan to Rad Belgrade where he played 16 games with 7 goals.
In 1990 he was back with Red Star and over the next two seasons played 99 games with 15 goals. In this period he won two Yugoslav leagues, a European Cup (defeating Olympique Marseille) and an Intercontinental Cup. In the world club tournament he won Best Player Award and scored a brace versus Chilean Colo-Colo.
In 1992 he arrived in Serie A. He signed for Sven-Goran Eriksson's Sampdoria. He had an excellent first year playing 35 games and scoring 10 goals. He would stay with the Blucerchiati for three seasons making a total of 100 appearances with 21 goals. In 1994 he won the Coppa Italia (Samp defeated Ancona 6-1 on aggregate).
In 1995 he moved to Juventus for two years. He played 77 games with 10 goals. It was a successful period as the "Vecchia Signora" (The Old Lady) won a Scudetto (1997), a Super Coppa (1995), a Champions League (he took the winning penalty in the shootout versus Ajax in 1996), an Intercontinental Cup (1996) and a UEFA Super Cup (1996).
In 1997 he joined Lazio and was reunited with Sven-Goran Eriksson and Roberto Mancini from his Sampdoria days. His stay at Lazio was brief but intense. He had a positive season. He played 27 league games with 2 goals (Bari, Sampdoria), 9 in Coppa Italia with 3 goals (Roma x 2, Milan) and 6 in the UEFA Cup with 1 goal (Atletico Madrid).
He formed a good midfield with Venturin, Nedved, Fuser and Marcolin. He scored penalties in both the cup derbies against Roma (4-1, 2-1) and again a penalty in the return leg of the final against Milan. With the score on 1-1, and Lazio needing two more goals, Jugovic took the responsibility and blasted a central shot past Rossi. Lazio went on to win 3-1 with a Nesta winner and lifted their first trophy for 30 years.
He was also a protagonist in Lazio's run to the UEFA Cup Final. He scored the decisive goal in the away leg of the semi-final against Atletico Madrid. Alas Lazio then lost the final in Paris against Inter.
After only a year in Rome Jugovic moved to the "Colchonero" side of Madrid and joined Atletico, while Christian Vieri travelled in the opposite direction.
In Madrid too he would only stay a year. He played 17 games in the Liga with 3 goals, 2 in Copa del Rey with 2 goals and 8 in the Uefa Cup with 2 goals. Atletico changed managers twice (Arrigo Sacchi to Carlos Aguiar to Radomir Antic) and came 13th in the Liga. They again reached the semi final of the UEFA Cup (losing to eventual winners Parma) and were beaten finalists in the Copa del Rey (Valencia 3-0). Not a great year for the "Colchoneros"
In 1999-2000 he was back in Italy with Inter. He stayed two years with the Nerazzurri; 39 games in Serie A (3 goals), 4 in Coppa Italia, 6 in Europe and 1 in the Italian Supercoppa (lost 4-3 against Lazio in 2000). He played under Marcello Lippi (later to win the World Cup with Italy) and briefly Marco Tardelli (another world champion) and Inter arrived 4th and then 5th.
In 2001 he joined Monaco in Ligue 1. The first season he played 25 games with 1 goal while in his second year he did not play at all.
In 2003 he moved to Austria to play for Admira Wacker. In his one season he played 25 league games (3 goals) and 1 in the Austrian Cup.
His last club was in Germany. In 2004 he joined LR Ahlen in the second division and 21 games with 2 goals.
At almost 36 years of age he retired.
At International level Jugovic played 4 games for Yugoslavia with 1 goal (Faroe Islands) and 37 for Serbia Montenegro with 2 goals (Faroe Islands, Malta). With Serbia Montenegro he participated in the France '96 World Cup (4 appearances) and the Euro 2000 in Holland and Belgium (4 appearances).
Jugovic was an all-round midfielder. At 1.78 metre and 76 kilos he was not an imposing player but he was strong and had many qualities. He was technically gifted, elegant on the ball and had excellent vision. He always seemed to know the right pass to make and when, a good decision maker. His sense of position and timing was superb and he was famous for his sudden attacking incursions. He was also cool under pressure, as his decisive penalties can confirm.
As mentioned earlier his time at Lazio was brief but intense. It was a pity he could not stay longer as he was highly respected and appreciated. His one season coincided with a record breaking four derby wins and the lifting of silverware after 30 years. Jugovic made a major contribution with his performances, charisma and goals, nobody will forget that at Lazio.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
1997-98 | 42 (6) | 27 (2) | 9 (3) | 6 (1) |
Sources
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