Whatever you do "Do Not Lose"
Both teams reasonably happy after scrappy and tense draw
Also on this day:
The season so far
The previous season in their first year back in Serie A, after three seasons in B, Lazio had finished 11th under Giuseppe Materazzi. The main joy had been winning the derby 1-0 with a Paolo Di Canio goal.
This year Materazzi was still manager. Lazio made quite a few changes in the transfer market. The most important players coming in were keeper Fernando Orsi (Arezzo), back after four years, defenders Cristiano Bergodi (Pescara), Raffaele Sergio (Mantova), Roberto Soldà (Verona), midfielders Franco Marchegiani (Pescara), Pedro Troglio (Verona), forwards Amarildo (Celta Vigo) and Alessandro Bertoni (Avellino).
Leaving were some of the promotion heroes: keeper Silvano Martina (Torino), defender Raimondo Marino (Lecce), midfielders Antonio Elia Acerbis (Verona) and Ciro Muro (Cosenza) plus forward Antonio Rizzolo (Pescara). Also saying goodbye were defender Nelson Gutiérrez (Verona) and forward Gustavo Dezotti (Cremonese). One later regret would be letting a young Luigi Di Biagio go as he would go on to play 114 league games for Roma, 117 for Inter and win 31 Italy caps.
So, Lazio did not appear to have particularly improved the squad but were hoping to better the previous year's eleventh place.
So far in Serie A Lazio had played 11 games; won 3, drawn 4 and lost 4. Their best results were beating Milan away 1-0 (it would not be repeated for 30 years in the league) and holding Juventus to a 1-1 draw in Rome. Unfortunately, two of the defeats had come in the last two games (Inter 0-3 away and Atalanta 1-2 at home with appalling refereeing). Lazio had 10 points.
In Coppa Italia, in August, Lazio had beaten Ancona 2-0 but then lost 1-2 at home to Bologna after extra-time (goals by two former players Bruno Giordano and Lorenzo Marronaro) and were eliminated.
Roma had finished 8th the previous season under Nils Liedholm, then the Luciano Spinosi- Luciano Lupi duo for four matches and then Liedholm again. A disappointing season for all the Lupi concerned and Roma also lost a derby after many years.
This year the manager was Luigi Radice (who had won a Scudetto with Torino in 1976). Roma had invested in some new players; keeper Giovanni Cervone (Verona), German defenders Thomas Berthold (Verona) and Stefano Pellegrino (Sampdoria), midfielder/forward Antonio Comi (Torino) plus striker Paolo Baldieri (Avellino).
Leaving Trigoria were keeper Angelo Peruzzi (Verona -on loan), defenders Fulvio Collovati (Genoa) and Emidio Oddi (Udinese), midfielders Andrade (Vasco da Gama), Roberto Policano (Torino), Daniele Massaro (Milan-end of loan) and hugely disappointing forward Renato (Flamengo).
In Coppa Italia, in August, Roma had played two games in the first phase beating Ternana 3-0 and Palermo 4-0, both at home. They still had a game against Inter in January.
In Serie A so far, the Giallorossi had won 5, drawn 3 and lost 3, so were on 13 points, three ahead of Lazio.
Roma of course had "traitor" Lionello Manfredonia in their squad as well as future Lazio Fabrizio Di Mauro (he would score in the 1993 derby against Roma)
Roma were slight favourites today but derbies as always were open to any result.
The match: Sunday, November 19, 1989, Stadio Flaminio, Rome
The derby was played at the small Flaminio stadium after 36 years, due to the restructuring of the Olimpico for Italia '90. It was also televised live by RAI for the Lazio region.
The area of Viale Tiziano, under the Parioli hill, was more like a war zone with 3,000 policemen and riot police everywhere in anticipation of possible clashes between rival fans.
There were only 22,000 fans present also due to these fears. So more or less one policeman every seven spectators.
Neither team had any injury problems so there were no surprises on the team sheets.
There were no great surprises in the game either, a monotonous battle played mainly in midfield. A classic derby of the period, tense and physical with continuous interruptions. The main priority was not to lose. The deadlock (derbies are never boring to those directly involved) was almost broken only once. In the 43rd minute Rudi Völler, on the right wing inside Lazio’s half, was immediately surrounded by three players but brilliantly switched the ball into the centre where Ruggero Rizzitelli was unmarked, he had a clear path to the area but once inside, with only the keeper to beat, sliced an awful effort well wide. Half time Roma 0 Lazio 0.
Things were going well... no-one was losing and there had been no crowd trouble.
The teams came on unchanged for the second half. In the 51st minute came a potential game changer. Lazio's centre forward, Brazilian Amarildo, instead of distributing bibles as was his habit, decided to donate a head-butt to Lionello Manfredonia (many Laziali's dream mind you). He had already been booked anyway but it was an obvious sending off, whatever Manfredonia had said to him. So, Lazio in ten men for the next 40 minutes or so. Roma took advantage to replace defender Antonio Tempestilli with a more offensive one, Manuel Gerolin.
One would have expected Roma to take control at this point but they were still hesitant and careful. Instead it was Lazio who seemed to throw caution to the wind and attacked more. In the 65th they even scored. A superb run by Rubén Sosa whose shot was parried and on the rebound he was pulled down by a defender for a clear penalty but the ball then spun across towards the centre of the area where Alessandro Bertoni had the simplest of tasks of slotting the ball into the empty goal. Roma 0 Lazio 1.
Roma thought they had equalised two minutes later with a Völler header but he was blatantly offside (practically on the goal line).
Lazio's hope now was to absorb pressure and try to strike on the break. In the 68th minute, however, the Lazio manager made a school boy's error and took off Sosa, the only player who could threaten Roma, putting on a defender Paolo Beruatto. Roma correctly responded by throwing on creative Bruno Conti for defender Thomas Berthold.
As predicted the game became attack against defence and Lazio were pegged back in their own area. The Roma equaliser came in the 83rd minute when captain Giannini headed in from close range after a Rizzitelli assist with another header. Roma 1 Lazio 1.
At this point only Roma could go on to win it. The Giallorossi only had one real chance, however, when a powerful long range, mid-height shot by Fabrizio Di Mauro was comfortably blocked by Valerio Fiori. Final score Roma 1 Lazio 1.
Both sides could consider the glass half full at the end, Roma had equalised when time was running out while Lazio had drawn a derby as underdogs and playing almost a whole half in ten men. The priority, and it had been achieved, was whatever happened not to lose.
The town of Rome saw the glass completely full as there had been no fights, scuffles, stabbings, molotovs thrown or the like between the opposing Ultras. Mind you it had taken a militarised operation to ensure it, so there was still room for progress. On and off the field.
Who played for Roma
Cervone, Tempestilli (54' Gerolin), Nela, Manfredonia, Berthold (70' Conti), Comi, Desideri, Di Mauro, Völler, Giannini, Rizzitelli
Substitutes: Tancredi, Cucciari, Baldieri
Manager: Radice
Who played for Lazio
Fiori, Bergodi, Sergio, Pin, Gregucci, Soldà, Di Canio (82' Troglio), Icardi, Amarildo, Bertoni, Sosa (68' Beruatto)
Substitutes: Orsi, Piscedda, Nardecchia
Manager: Materazzi
Referee: D'Elia
Goals: 65' Bertoni, 83' Giannini
What happened next
Lazio finished 9th, a slight improvement on the previous year. The Biancocelesti won 8, drew 15 and lost 11 (including Roma 0-1). Their best result was thrashing Maradona's Napoli 3-0 at the Flaminio, the Partenopei would then win the Scudetto in May. Lazio’s top scorer was Amarildo with 9 goals (8 in A, as did Rubén Sosa). So, a similar season to '88-89 and time for a change. Enter Dino Zoff.
Roma finished 6th (UEFA Cup). After the derby they went unbeaten until January 17 (beating Juventus on the way). They ended up with 14 wins, 13 draws and 7 defeats. Top scorer was Rudi Voeller with 16 goals (14 in A).
In Coppa Italia they lost 1-3 to Inter finishing on the same points and goal difference as the Nerazzurri. The tie was thus decided with a “toss of a coin” or something more modern to that effect and Roma qualified. In the semi-final final, however, they lost to Juventus 3-4 on aggregate.
The Scudetto as mentioned was won by Napoli for their second title. There were four relegations and the unlucky ones were; Ascoli, Cremonese, Verona and Udinese.
Let’s talk about Alessandro Bertoni
Alessandro Bertoni was born in Reggio Emilia, on February 15 1959.
He started his football in his hometown team of Reggiana and went through the various youth teams before making his debut in '77-78 with 3 appearances in Serie C. The Granata, under manager Guido Mammi, went close to promotion finishing 3rd.
In 1978-79, first under Mammi and then Franco Marini (from the 30th fixture onwards), "La Regia" finished 4th but Bertoni played more, 17 league games.
In 1979 he left "La Città del Tricolore" (the birthplace of the Italian flag) and joined Rondinella Marzocco (Florence) in C2. The "Rondine" (The Swallow) finished 3rd and Bertoni played 29 league games with 8 goals.
In 1980 he stayed in Tuscany but joined Pisa in Serie B. The manager was Lauro Toneatto and the Nerazzurri finished 7th. Bertoni played 22 league games with 6 goals (Cesena, Atalanta, Lecce x2, Lazio, SPAL). He played alongside former Lazio Aldo Cantarutti and future Lazio Arturo Vianello. Pisa's biggest result was beating Milan 1-0 at San Siro.
In 1981-82 he stayed under the leaning tower and Pisa were promoted to Serie A. The manager was Aldo Agroppi and Bertoni played 37 league games with 10 goals (Pescara, Catania, Rimini, Perugia, Palermo, Lecce, Pescara, Cremonese, Sampdoria and SPAL).
In 1982 he went up the Arno and joined Fiorentina in Serie A. The Viola came 5th under Giancarlo De Sisti. Bertoni played 24 league games with 2 goals (Catanzaro on debut and Avellino), 5 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Nocerina) and made his European debut playing 2 games in the Uefa Cup. He played alongside World Champions Giancarlo Antognoni and Francesco Graziani and briefly future Lazio Paolo Monelli (he left in the Autumn - to return the following season).
The following year Bertoni stayed in Florence and the Gigliati finished 3rd (UEFA Cup). Bertoni played less, 9 league games and 3 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Ascoli). He played alongside two more World Champions: Gabriele Oriali and Daniel Passarella.
In 1984, still in Tuscany, he joined Arezzo in Serie B. The Amaranto got through three managers; Enzo Riccomini (1-23), Giuseppe Chiappella (24-32) and Mario Rossi (33-38) and finished 14th. Bertoni played 36 league games with only 1 goal. Two of his team-mates were future Lazio Fabrizio Di Mauro and Giuseppe Corti plus future Roma Amedeo Carboni.
In 1985 Bertoni left Tuscany for Campania and joined Avellino in Serie A. The Irpini had a good season under Enzo Robotti and finished 11th. Bertoni played 30 league games with 1 goal (Pisa) and 5 in Coppa Italia with 2 goals (Ancona, Inter). The squad included former Lazio Andrea Agostinelli and Joāo Batista. Avellino's best results were beating Roma and Inter, both 1-0 at home.
In 1986-87 he stayed in Irpinia. The manager was former Lazio Luís Vinicio and the Biancoverdi finished a record high 8th. They beat Milan, Roma and Fiorentina at home and drew with Juventus, while away the beat Udinese 6-2). Bertoni played 27 league games with 3 goals (Juventus, Udinese, Sampdoria).
In 1987-88 still at Avellino the fairy-tale faded and the "Lupi" were relegated, under first Vinicio and then, after six games, Eugenio Bersellini. The Irpini's best result was beating Juventus 1-0 at home with a Bertoni winner. They also drew away at Inter 1-1 and Roma 0-0 and 0-0 at home against Milan. They Biancoverdi reached the quarterfinals of the Coppa Italia but were knocked out by Juventus 1-2 on aggregate. Bertoni played 30 league games with 2 goals (Torino Juventus) plus 9 games in Coppa Italia with 2 goals (Cremonese, Parma). This year one of his team-mates was former Lazio Massimo Storgato.
In 1988-89 he stayed with Avellino in Serie B. The manager was first Enzo Ferrari (1-13) and then former Lazio Eugenio Fascetti (14-38) and Avellino went no further than 7th place. Bertoni played 36 league games with 2 goals (Taranto, Barletta). The squad included former Lazio Carlo Perrone.
In 1989 he left Irpinia and came to the capital, joining Lazio. The manager was Beppe Materazzi and Lazio finished 9th. Bertoni played 26 league games with 2 goals (Roma, Genoa) plus 2 games in Coppa Italia. Bertoni got into Lazio’s history books scoring in the derby; it ended up 1-1, Giannini equalising seven minutes from time. Lazio’s biggest wins were 1-0 away to Milan, 3-0 at home to eventual champions Napoli and 2-1 at home to Inter.
The next season Italian legend Dino Zoff arrived as manager. Lazio also signed German forward Karl-Heinz Riedle and Armando Madonna, so Bertoni played less, 8 league games and 1 in Coppa Italia. Lazio finished 11th, their best results being defeating Juventus 1-0 at home while both derbies were draws.
In 1991 Bertoni left Lazio and returned home to Reggiana in Serie B. Under manager Giuseppe Marchioro, the Granata finished 7th and Bertoni played 35 league games with 2 goals (Modena, Bologna) and 4 games in Coppa Italia. He chose his two goals well, both in local derbies. His teammates included former Lazio defender Mario Monti and a young but already silver-haired Fabrizio Ravanelli.
The following year went better for Reggiana who topped Serie B and won promotion but not so well for Bertoni who never played and in January joined nearby Carpi in C1. He played 6 league games, first under Giorgio Ciaschini and then Domenico Fornaciari. The "Falconi" finished 17th but avoided relegation due to Ternana and Taranto's financial difficulties.
Bertoni then retired at 34.
Since retiring he has lived in his hometown of Reggio Emilia. He has remained in the football world and trains kids at Polisportiva Falk, a satellite club of Reggiana.
Bertoni was a forward. He was not overly physical at 1.76 and 72 kilos but he was very athletic and mobile, opening spaces and pairing up well with the real centre-forwards. He had a good club career, playing 134 games in Serie A with 12 goals including two against Juventus and one against Roma. He also won a promotion with Pisa in '82.
At Lazio he had a positive first season with the satisfaction of scoring in a Roman derby. He played 35 games for the Biancocelesti with 2 goals but the goal against the Giallorossi counts as many more.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1989-90 | 28 (2) | 26 (2) | 2 |
1990-91 | 9 | 8 | 1 |
Total | 37 (2) | 34 (2) | 3 |
Sources
Comentários