Just one positive: the two points
Biancocelesti in great difficulty manage to win thanks to a Giordano penalty
The season so far
The previous season had been rather disastrous. There was a new Presidency with Gian Casoni and there were promotion ambitions but the team did not live up to the expectations. It was so bad that the Biancocelesti needed a Vincenzo D’Amico hat trick to beat Varese coming from behind in the final game at the Olimpico to avoid Serie C.
This year the situation was completely different. Italy had won the World Cup and the Federation took two years off the suspensions for all the players involved in the match fixing scandal of 1980. As a consequence, Lazio stars Bruno Giordano and Lionello Manfredonia were available to play. The two, feeling guilty over what had happened, even if they probably did not do that much to be given such long sentences (three years and six months), had sworn that if they did come back to play, their first objective was to get Lazio back to Serie A. So, at least for moment, they were staying.
There was a massive coming and going in the summer transfer window. The club said goodbye to scudetto heroes Felice Pulici (retired) and Renzo Garlaschelli (Pavia) plus Giorgio Mastropasqua (Catania), Dario Pighin (Taranto), Alberto Bigon (Vicenza), Dario Sanguin (Perugia), Nando Viola (Genoa), Walter Speggiorin (Massese), Dario Marigo (Perugia). New arrivals were Fernando Orsi (Parma), Renato Miele (Catania), Gabriele Podavini (Brescia), Roberto Tavola (Juventus), Enrico Vella (Catania), Claudio Ambu (Perugia) plus the return from last year’s loans of Carlo Perrone and Stefano Chiodi.
The manager was Roberto Clagluna. He had substituted Ilario Castagner half way through the previous season and had been confirmed.
The season opened with the Coppa Italia and Lazio did not make it to the next round. They lost against Avellino and Napoli and were unable to beat Atalanta at home so they arrived third by just one point.
In campionato the Biancocelesti started slowly with three draws but then a couple of changes in the game prior to this one allowed the team to blossom. Against Sambenedettese, Orsi substituted Maurizio Moscatelli, who was not performing well following his return to football after breaking his Achilles tendon, Renato Miele was placed at the centre of the defence and Marco Saltarelli was introduced as new left-back. Lazio won 1-0 so now there was a lot of enthusiasm.
The match: Sunday, October 10, 1982, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Lazio needed to confirm the progress shown the previous week at San Benedetto but unfortunately Maurizio Montesi was out with flu and substituted by Roberto Tavola. As a consequence the game was boring, the Biancocelesti were unable to play anywhere near a decent level. The first half was awful with nothing to report. All Cremonese did was to defend, they certainly could have done more.
Things improved in the second particularly because Vincenzo D’Amico substituted Leonardo Surro and there was now at least a minimum of unpredictably on the pitch. Lazio continued to have problems in creating chances but at least the game went from awful to just terrible. Roberto Badiani had a chance with a shot on an open goal that was only just wide after a misunderstanding between Enrico Pionetti and Sergio Paolinelli. Cremonese also had a chance but Gianluca Vialli on the counterattack could not do anything better than shoot at Fernando Orsi.
The match changer arrived 13 minutes to the end. Gabriele Podavini was tripped up in the box by Fabio Ferri. The Lazio right back had got into the area wanting to cross to the middle but there were no Laziali in sight so he opted to get a corner. The Cremonese defender however was too precipitous and the referee indicated the penalty spot. Bruno Giordano, who tried to preach in the desert all match, sometimes overdoing it, took the spot kick and Lazio went ahead.
That was all that was needed to win and that was basically all that happened in the game. A lot of work to do for the Biancocelesti if they wanted to get back to Serie A.
Who played for Lazio
Orsi, Podavini, Saltarelli, Vella, Miele Manfredonia, Ambu, Tavola, Giordano, Badiani (73’ Chiarenza), Surro (46’ D’Amico)
Manager: Clagluna
Who played for Cremonese
Pionetti, Garzilli (81' Finardi), F.Ferri, Mazzoni (46' Montorfano), S.Di Chiara, Paolinelli, Viganò, Bonomi, Frutti, Bencina, Vialli.
Substitutes: C.Oddi, Boni, Rebonato.
Manager: Mondonico.
Referee: Lamorgese
Goal: 78’ Giordano (pen)
What happened next
After this game Lazio lost at Bologna but then things began to change and Lazio went on a roll of seven consecutive victories from the end of October to mid-December and reached the top spot in Serie B.
In December, in the last match of 1982, Lazio drew 2-2 in a spectacular game against other promotion favourites Milan, and Serie A looked just around the corner.
But in 1983 things went south. In the 19 games from the start of the year Lazio won only three. The Biancocelesti went into a long psychological and technical crisis. They had difficulties in scoring because they were not creating chances. Clagluna could not figure out a solution. In April Lazio dismally drew 0-0 three times and lost at home against Pistoiese and away to Varese.
The match against Reggiana on May 8 was fundamental. Serie A was slipping away. Lazio scored three times with Giordano but were unable to secure victory. Clagluna had to go in order to create a spark that could help Lazio get over the line. Old Lazio glory Giancarlo Morrone, who was managing the Primavera team, was called in to help create that spark. The next match things precipitated even further and Lazio lost 5-1 to Milan.
On Sunday May 22, Lazio fans woke up with heavy hearts. But when they went to buy their newspapers they discovered that Giorgio Chinaglia wanted to buy Lazio. The enthusiasm that this news generated brought 55,000 people to Lazio Atalanta, a decisive game, and lifted the team to victory.
After a goalless draw at Arezzo the following Sunday came the mother of all games for Lazio at home against Catania. A win meant that only a point would then be needed to get promoted. And win it was thanks to a shot from Podavini deflected by Mastropasqua that made it 2-1. The last game against Cavese finished 2-2 and Lazio were finally in Serie A after three years.
A final note on that season. In order to celebrate, Lazio organised a friendly against Ajax on June 17. Apart from Giordano scoring three incredible goals, the match was important because Italians were introduced to a young Dutch centre forward for the very first time. His name was Marco Van Basten.
Lazio 1982-83
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie B | 38 | 14 | 18 | 6 | 44 |
Coppa Italia | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
Total | 43 | 16 | 19 | 8 | 52 |
Top five appearances (complete player statistics)
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
43 | 38 | 5 | |
42 | 38 | 4 | |
39 | 34 | 5 | |
38 | 34 | 4 | |
38 | 36 | 2 |
Top five goal scorers (complete player statistics)
Player | Total | Serie B | Coppa Italia |
Bruno Giordano | 21 | 18 | 3 |
Enrico Vella | 5 | 5 | - |
Vincenzo D'Amico | 5 | 4 | 1 |
Lionello Manfredonia | 4 | 4 | - |
Claudio Ambu | 4 | 3 | 1 |
Let's talk about Marco Saltarelli
Marco Saltarelli had a tragic, unlucky life. Born in Albano Laziale near Rome on May 28, 1962, he was part of the Lodigiani youth team and debuted for the club in 1981-82. Noticed during a friendly, in 1982 he signed for Lazio. That year with the return of Bruno Giordano and Lionello Manfredonia, Lazio were one of the favourites for promotion. Saltarelli initially was used as a back up left back, but the Biancocelesti struggled in the beginning so manager Roberto Clagluna at San Benedetto del Tronto decided to substitute Vincenzo Chiarenza with the young player. He did very well, so well that Chiarenza was sold in the winter transfer window and Saltarelli became a regular player. He made 30 appearances that season, which culminated in the return to Serie A.
In 1983 he signed for Monza in Serie B and played for four Seasons, the last one in C1. In 1987 he moved to Sambenedettese in Serie B and after a year he signed for Barletta. His last two years of active football took place with Perugia in Serie C1.
In September 1992, Saltareli lost his wife. After giving birth to their second child, the doctor did not notice something was wrong. Marco tried to convince him that his wife was ill, but the head physician ignored him and she died. The doctor was later sentenced to 20 months in jail.
Saltarelli moved to Pomezia and opened a bar. Then on May 28 2004, as he was driving on the road that from Pomezia goes to Albano he had a terrible car accident. His Mercedes 200 hit a truck that was doing a U turn. He died instantly at just 42 years of age.
Lazio Career
Season | Serie B |
1982-83 | 30 |
Sources
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