Miracle draw
Against the mighty Inter, Lazio manage to equalize towards the end of the game thanks to Talamonti
Also on this day: October 30, 1999; Inter Lazio 1-1. Thanks to a last gasp Pancaro equaliser, Lazio add a good point to the tally. Lazio hero of the day: Beppe Pancaro
The season so far
On July 19, 2004 Claudio Lotito became President. The situation was critical from a financial point of view. Many of their best players such as Sinisa Mihajlovic, Beppe Favalli and Jaap Stam did not renew their contracts and went elsewhere. Manager Roberto Mancini signed for Inter despite being under contract with Lazio. But Lazio had no means to keep him and he knew it. From what is known, his contacts with Inter started in the autumn and he tried to convince many of his players to follow him to Inter. Some did, some refused (for example Stam).
Stefano Fiore and Bernardo Corradi were sold to Valencia to cover the debt remaining with the Spanish club for the signing of Gaizka Mendieta. Demetrio Albertini was sold to Atalanta as payment for the other halves of Luciano Zauri and Ousmane Dabo. Claudio Lopez was loaned to America Mexico so Lazio could save paying his wages.
Two players not under contract decided to stay: Angelo Peruzzi and Fernando Couto.
Lotito therefore inherited a team with no manager and just a few players. The team was temporarily given to Mimmo Caso, the primavera manager and hero of the -9 season, for the pre-season training in Japan. Lazio had to fulfil a contract so off they went. In Japan Caso got on well with the players (and he was also cheap), so Lotito confirmed him.
Lotito’s second move was a PR one. He needed the Lazio fans on his side, so his idea was the return of Paolo Di Canio, an unforgotten hero of the tifosi. Di Canio managed to get released from his contract and came back home.
Lotito’s last move was the signing of seven players on the last day of the summer transfer window. These included some forgettable signings, but also two players that would become the backbone of the early Lotito years: Tommaso Rocchi and Sebastiano Siviglia.
The first game of the season was the Super Coppa final. Lazio did not have the strength to put up much of a fight and lost 3-0.
In Serie A it had not been easy, but in 8 games Lazio had managed to win 3 (two in the first 3 games) and draw 2. They were 8th. They had managed to qualify for the group stage in the UEFA Cup by beating Metalurh Donetsk 6-0 on aggregate. In the first game of the group stage the Biancocelesti had drawn at home with Villarreal.
Today was a difficult match against former manager Roberto Mancini.
The match: Saturday, October 30, 2004, Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, Milan
Lazio went into the game against their great former manager with nine players injured as well as with the knowledge that defeat was probably inevitable. Inter were full of Lazio's 2000 scudetto players: Sinisa Mihajlovic, Beppe Favalli, Juan Sebastian Veron and Dejan Stankovic. A tough match.
In the 10th minute there was a free kick for the home team. Zė Maria, from a rather angled position, tried to surprise Matteo Sereni by shooting towards the front post instead of crossing. The trajectory was made even more dangerous by a Massimo Oddo deflection but the Lazio keeper miraculously saved.
Inter were not playing well and the ultra-defensive Lazio were giving them a headache. In the 24th minute Favalli was forced off through injury and replaced by Diego Zanetti. Since the Neroazzurri were inoffensive, the Biancocelesti tried to move a little forward and in the 37th minute a great Christian Manfredini free kick deflected by Emre Belözoğlu was saved with some difficulty by Alberto Fontana. In the 41st minute Lazio’s big chance. Goran Pandev beat Mihajlovic for speed on a counter attack, ball to Antonio FIllippini just inside the box but central but his shot went wide.
In the first minute of the second half a Mihajlovic classic. Not a free kick but a long pass from Inter’s half to Adriano, Lazio’s defence were taken by surprise, and the Brazilian beat Sereni.
The home side were now more relaxed and the Biancocelesti in massive trouble. The Lazio keeper was heavily bombarded by Veron and Emre but the team managed to avoid opening the floodgates. Then, the miracle. In the 86th minute a free kick for Lazio on the right. Oddo crossed, Leonardo Talamonti anticipated Mihajlovic and headed the ball past Fontana.
Inter reacted with rage. Alvaro Recoba first hit the crossbar on a free kick in the 86th minute, then in injury time he had the chance to score in front of Sereni but his shot went too high.
Final score 1-1. It was just a point, but seeing Mancini seething with rage was like a win for some fans.
Who played for Inter
Fontana, Cordoba, Mihajlovic, Favalli (24' J. Zanetti), Zè Maria, Cambiasso, Veron, Emre (77' Stankovic), Davids, Cruz (63' Recoba), Adriano
Substitutes: Toldo, Materazzi, C. Zanetti, Martins
Manager: Mancini
Who played for Lazio
Sereni, Oddo, Talamonti, Fernando Couto, Oscar Lopez (80’ Delgado), Dabo, Giannichedda, Manfredini, Pandev (64’ De Sousa), A. Filippini (58’ Seric), Rocchi
Substitutes: Casazza, Sannibale, Mea Vitali, E.Gonzalez
Manager: Caso
Referee: Trefoloni
Goals: 46’ Adriano, 84’ Talamonti
What happened next
In Serie A things did not go well. In the first 16 games Lazio won four, drew five and lost seven. They had 17 points, just four clear of relegation zone. They were clearly in difficulty: badly organised, no game plan, problems between Caso and Di Canio and poor quality of some of the players. Furthermore, the Biancocelesti were eliminated in the UEFA Cup group stage without winning a match.
So, just before Christmas, Lotito called another former player, Giuseppe Papadopulo, to manage Lazio. He was seen as more apt to guide the Biancocelesti to safety. The task was immediately uphill since the first game of the season was the derby, but Lazio amazingly won 3-1 and won in Florence in the next match, but that was followed by just one point in the next five games.
The Biancocelesti won three in a row, then one point in three games, and then two wins and a draw. As one can see the story of the season was two steps forward, three steps back. With six games from the end of the season Lazio were 7th and relatively safe but then they lost three in a row and things got worrying. Lazio then drew the last three matches and managed to stay in Serie A. Papadopulo was able to add a greater fighting spirit to the side, but little else. Lotito had a lot of work to do if he wanted to improve the side.
In the UEFA Cup Lazio managed to reach the group stage by beating Metalurh Donetsk 6-0 on aggregate but were eliminated after losing one and drawing three. In Coppa Italia they were eliminated by Cagliari in the Round of 16.
Oddo was the player with the most appearances (42) and Rocchi the most goals with 17.
Lazio 2004-05
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 48 |
Coppa Italia | 2 | 1 | - | 1 | 4 |
UEFA Cup | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 11 |
Super Coppa | 1 | - | - | 1 | - |
Total | 47 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 63 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup | Super Coppa |
Oddo | 42 | 35 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
A. Filippini | 41 | 36 | 2 | 3 | - |
Rocchi | 41 | 35 | 1 | 5 | - |
Dabo | 37 | 29 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
Giannichedda | 37 | 32 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
Rocchi | 17 | 13 | 2 | 2 |
Di Canio | 7 | 6 | - | 1 |
Muzzi | 6 | 3 | - | 3 |
Oddo | 4 | 4 | - | - |
A. Filippini | 4 | 2 | 2 | - |
Pandev | 4 | 3 | - | 1 |
Cesar | 4 | 3 | - | 1 |
Let’s talk about Óscar López
Óscar López Hernández, better known as Óscar López, was born on May 11, 1980, at Cerdanyola del Vallès. He started playing football in the Barcelona youth teams and debuted with Barcelona C in 1997. After three seasons he went up a letter and joined Barcelona B for another three years. In 2003 he debuted with the first team in a win against Recreativo de Huelva. He made 8 appearances with Barcelona A and in 2004 was loaned to Lazio.
In Rome he made 21 appearances. He was a decent right back and did not do too badly even though he was not Serie A material. In 2005 he was loaned to Betis and then signed with them on a permanent basis. He played in Seville for two seasons but not regularly, just 18 league appearances. In 2007 he was loaned to Gimnàstic Tarragona. After his contract with Betis ended in 2010, he began playing for Numancia. His last year of activity was in Holland with Go Ahead Eagles where he made 7 appearances with one goal.
Once he stopped playing, he began a successful youth coaching career. Between 2015 and 2017 he was manager of Badalona’s Under 19s and then assistant for the Barcelona Under 18s and 19s between 2017 and 2019. In 2019 he became head coach of the Under 18s for two seasons. Since 2021 he has been manager of the Barcelona under 19s.
Oscar Lopez will be remembered at Lazio for being part of the first Claudio Lotito signings.
Lazio Career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup | Super Coppa |
2004-05 | 21 | 14 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
Sources
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