An exciting game but no winners
A derby which could have gone either way ends with a point each
Also on this day: March 5, 1995, Lazio Fiorentina 8-2. A celebration of Zeman's football at its best as Lazio put eight goals past Fiorentina. Player of the day: Roberto Cravero
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had finished 12th under Umberto Mannocci. The highlights were beating Roma 1-0 (the other derby was 0-0) and Milan 2-0 away. Top scorer was Vito D'Amato with 7 league goals.
This season Mannocci had stayed on but then been replaced on November 7 by Maino Neri. The main summer transfers in were defender Sergio Castelletti (Fiorentina, after 214 league games), midfielders Arrigo Dolso (Udinese), Rino Marchesi (Fiorentina), Giuseppe Massa (Internapoli) plus forwards Romano Bagatti (Varese), Juan Carlos Morrone (Fiorentina) and Gianni Sassaroli (Avellino-end of loan). In the autumn Lazio had added defenders Pietro Adorni (Napoli) and Antonio Maggioni (Juventus-on loan).
Leaving were defenders Vincenzo Gasperi (Varese), Giampiero Vitali (Fiorentina), midfielder Giovanni Sacco (Juventus-end of loan) plus forwards Nicola Ciccolo (Vicenza), Antonio Renna (Varese) and Orlando Rozzoni (SPAL).
The season started with a 1-5 away defeat to Fiorentina. A sign of things to come. Since then, Lazio had won 4 (including Inter 1-0 at home), drawn 10 (including Milan 2-2 away and Juventus 0-0 at home) and lost 7 (including derby 0-1). The Biancocelesti were currently 14th, on 18 points, only two from the last relegation slot. The main problem and not a minor one, was scoring goals, only 13 so far in 22 games. A week earlier the Biancocelesti had drawn at home to Milan, 0-0 unsurprisingly.
In Coppa Italia, Lazio had beaten Catania 1-0 away in September but then lost 0-2 at home to Lecco in November and crashed out.
Today's game was important for points, but in the Roman derby the points are just a consequential detail while the prerogative is to defeat the historic rivals.
Roma had finished 8th the previous season under manager Oronzo Pugliese.
This year the manager from Bari had stayed on, but Roma had been active on the transfer market. Arriving were keeper Pier Luigi Pizzaballa (Atalanta), defenders Gennaro Olivieri (SPAL), Paolo Sirena (Inter), midfielders Luigi Ossola (Varese), Joaquín Peiró (Inter), Nevio Scala (Milan-on loan), Sergio Pellizzaro (Mantova), Giordano Colausig (Vicenza) plus forward Fabio Enzo (Tevere Roma).
Leaving were keeper Fabio Cudicini (Brescia, after 8 seasons), defenders Mario Ardizzon (Bologna), Glauco Tomasin (SPAL), Renato Benaglia (Vicenza), Victor Benítez (Venezia) plus forwards Elvio Salvori (Atalanta), Angelo Spanio (Savona), Fulvio Francesconi (Sampdoria) and Lamberto Leonardi (Varese).
So quite a few comings and goings.
So far, the Giallorossi were in 8th position, on 23 points. They had won 8 (including the derby and Juventus, both 1-0), drawn 7 and lost 7. A week earlier, the Lupi had lost 1-2 at Cagliari. The Giallorossi were winless in the last 6 matches (4 draws and 2 defeats),
In Coppa Italia, the Lupetti had been eliminated in the first round in September, after a 2-2 draw in Palermo the toss of the coin favoured the Sicilians.
So, a derby between two struggling teams with no clear favourites.
The match: Sunday, March 5, 1967, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A nice, sunny day brought about 60,000 to the Olimpico for this "Stracittadina".
Lazio had a last-minute absence as keeper Idilio Cei had a problem with his thigh in the morning and was replaced by Roberto Gori. Roma had Giacomo Losi and Nevio Scala fit again but were missing Fabio Enzo who was out for disciplinary points.
Roma started better than Lazio with Sergio Pellizzaro particularly active. He put the Lazio defence in constant difficulty and in the 5th minute teed up Paolo Barison but he missed the target.
Lazio stirred in the 10th minute. Romano Bagatti put a perfect through ball to Vito D'Amato who struck it well but Pier Luigi Pizzaballa pulled off an excellent save.
Pellizzaro continued to be rampant and Piero Dotti was booked for hacking him down and a few minutes later Pellizzaro shot wide after combining with Barison. At this point Lazio changed around the markers; Antonio Maggioni took Pellizzaro, Dotti on Giordano Colausig and Pierluigi Pagni on Joaquin Peirò.
It seemed to work as Lazio started to get the upper hand. There were several scrambles in the Roma area and then Juan Carlos Morrone had a dangerous effort go just over the bar. Halftime Roma 0 Lazio 0.
A lively game despite the score line with Roma superior in the early stages and Lazio in the second part.
The second half started with Pellizzaro charged up again. He went down to the by-line and pulled back a lovely ball for Peirò but the Spaniard incredibly missed the ball.
Roma insisted and defender Paolo Sirena stormed down the wing, cut inside, beat Dotti and suddenly had only Gori in front of him but the reserve keeper charged off his line and saved well.
At this point Roma started to tire and Lazio tried to take advantage. Bagatti had a thundering long range shot which Pizzaballa punched away. Then Lazio had a similar chance to Roma's in the first half, Morrone went down the right and from the by-line squared for Bagatti but he stumbled on the ball when he had simply to bury it. Lazio had one last chance to win it but D'Amato's strike from 20 metres out hit the post. Full time Roma 0 Lazio 0.
An entertaining derby, a lot more than the score line would lead one to believe. Both sides could have won, so a point each was probably the fairest outcome. That is if anyone cares about fairness in a local derby.
The point was useful to Lazio who moved up to 19 points but still only two points above the last relegation place, Vicenza on 17.
Who played for Roma
Pizzaballa, Sirena, Sensibile, Scala, Losi, Carpenetti, Pellizzaro, Colausig, Peirò, Tamborini, Barison
Manager: Pugliese
Who played for Lazio
Manager: Neri
Referee: Lo Bello
What happened next
Lazio ended up relegated. The Biancocelesti only won two more matches and finished 15th. They only scored 20 league goals all season. Top scorers were Romano Bagatti and Juan Carlos Morrone with 4.
Roma finished 10th. They won another 3, drew 3 and lost 5. Top scorer was Paolo Barison with 15 in total while in Serie A it was Peiró with 9.
The Scudetto was won by Juventus for the 13th time. Lazio went down with Foggia, Venezia and Lecco.
Lazio 1966-67
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 34 | 6 | 15 | 13 | 20 |
Coppa Italia | 2 | 1 | - | 1 | 1 |
Mitropa Cup | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
Total | 40 | 8 | 16 | 16 | 26 |
Top Five Appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Mitropa Cup |
Morrone | 38 | 33 | 2 | 3 |
Carosi | 38 | 33 | 2 | 3 |
Cei | 37 | 31 | 2 | 4 |
D'Amato | 37 | 32 | 2 | 3 |
Pagni | 36 | 30 | 2 | 4 |
Top Five Goal Scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Mitropa Cup |
Bagatti | 7 | 4 | - | 3 |
D'Amato | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
Morrone | 4 | 4 | - | - |
Marchesi | 2 | 2 | - | - |
Sassaroli | 2 | 2 | - | - |
Let's talk about Can Bartu
Can Bartu was born in Istanbul, on January 30, 1936.
His sporting career is interesting for the fact that he initially did not play football but basketball, a huge sport in Turkey.
He played for Fenerbahçe basketball and even played 6 games for the Turkish national team.
Then the Fenerbahçe football manager suggested that he try football, which Bartu took up with equal success. At first, he played both, once playing two games in the same day scoring two goals at football and ten points at basketball.
In the mid-50's he decided to concentrate on football. He played a total of five seasons for Fenerbahçe, with 114 league appearances and scoring 54 goals. "Fener" won two league titles, 1959 and 1961.
In the summer of 1961, he moved to Italy and joined Fiorentina, despite Lazio going very close to signing him too. The manager was Hungarian Nándor Hidegkuti and the Viola finished 3rd. They were also runners-up in the Cup Winners Cup, losing 1-4 on aggregate to Atlético Madrid. They then won the Mitropa Cup. Bartu played 14 league games with 2 goals (Bologna, Inter), 3 in the Cup Winners Cup with 1 goal (Újpesti Dózsa) and 6 in the Mitropa Cup with 2 goals (Vojvodina, Spartak Trnava). His teammates included future Lazio, Rino Marchesi (1966-71) and Orlando Rozzoni (1959-61, 1962-64 and 1965-66).
In 1962 he stayed in Serie A but joined Venezia. The manager was Carlo Alberto Quario and the "Leoni Alati" (Winged Lions) were relegated. Bartu played 29 league games with 8 goals and 2 in Coppa Italia with 2 goals.
In 1963-64 his performances earned him a return to Fiorentina. The manager was now Ferruccio Valcareggi but he was replaced after seven games by Giuseppe Chiappella. The Viola finished 4th but Bartu only played 10 league games and 1 in Coppa Italia. Two of his teammates were future Italian champion with Lazio, Pier Paolo Manservisi (1970-71, 1972-74) and another future Biancoceleste Sergio Castelletti (1966-68). Rino Marchesi was also still there.
Lazio were Bartu's next club as in 1964 he moved to the capital. The manager was Umberto Mannocci and Lazio finished 14th. Bartu played 14 league games with 2 goals (Messina, Genoa) and 1 game in Coppa Italia. Both derbies were 0-0 draws. One of his teammates was future legendary Lazio manager, Eugenio Fascetti (1986-88).
In 1965-66 Bartu stayed with Lazio as did manager Mannocci. The Biancocelesti finished 12th and Bartu played 24 league games with 2 goals (Bologna, Cagliari) and 3 games in Coppa Italia. The highlights of the season were winning a derby (the other was 0-0) and beating Milan 2-0 away.
The 1966-67 season would be his last in Rome and unfortunately ended in relegation. The managers were first Mannocci and then Maino Neri but the Biancocelesti finished 15th. Bartu only played 8 league games and 1 in the Mitropa Cup. One of the few highlights was beating Inter 1-0 at home.
With Lazio in Serie B, Bartu returned to Turkey and Fenerbahçe. He played three more seasons for the Sari Kanaryalar (Yellow Canaries), winning two more league titles. He played 36 league games with 8 goals.
In 1970, at 34, he retired.
He won 26 caps for Turkey, scoring 6 times. He is one of the few sportsmen to have played for his country in two different sports.
On retiring he became a respected sports journalist.
As a player Bartu was a midfielder often used as a winger. He was a skilful, quick and agile player, often setting up goals. He was often called the "Sivori of Istanbul". One weakness however was his inconsistency as he could be brilliant one week and poor the next. He played 101 games in Serie A with 14 goals while in his homeland he won four league titles and scored 62 league goals.
At Lazio he played 50 games with 4 goals. They were difficult years but especially in the second he played regularly. At Lazio along with Şükrü Gülesin (1951-52) he is THE Turkish connection. One memory the Romans have of him was his fondness for luxury products. He apparently came from a rich family of "Istanbullus" and claimed he played football just for the fun of it, preferring to spend his wages in boutiques.
Bartu died on April 11, 2019.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Mitropa Cup |
1964-65 | 15 (2) | 14 (2) | 1 | - |
1965-66 | 27 (2) | 24 (2) | 3 | - |
1966-67 | 9 | 8 | - | 1 |
Total | 51 (4) | 46 (4) | 4 | 1 |
Sources
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