What a win!!!!
Lazio demolish Inter 3-0 with goals from Giordano, Cupini and Laudrup
Also on this day: September 18, 1955, Padova Lazio 1-2. In the first game of the season Lazio win in Padua thanks to Muccinelli and Selmosson. Player of the day: Angelo VIlla.
The season so far
The previous year, thanks to the old guard – Bruno Giordano, Lionello Manfredonia and Vincenzo D’Amico – Lazio were able to secure promotion after three years from the harsh and unjust relegation due to the first Calcio Scommesse betting scandal.
During the summer Giorgio Chinaglia, the 1974 Lazio scudetto hero, took over the club. Chinaglia had left the Biancocelesti to play for New York Cosmos in the mid 1970s and his return was all Biancocelesti fans' dream. Claiming to have large sums of money to invest, Long John was welcomed like a Messiah, the one who would take Lazio back to the highest levels.
He confirmed Giancarlo Morrone as manager, and brought in some of his former teammates: Nello Governato as Sporting Director, Felice Pulici as General Manager and Renato Ziaco, the famous team doctor of the 1974 team, back in his former role.
The team went through a revolution. Thirteen players were sold and the first two Lazio foreign players since the opening to non-Italians were Michael Laudrup, on loan from Juventus, and Brazilian International Joāo Batista.
Lazio had played the group stage of the Coppa Italia between August and the beginning of September. After drawing at Catanzaro and beating Perugia 2-0 (D’Amico and Enrico Vella), the Biancocelesti had surprisingly lost at Taranto 1-0 and were unable to go beyond a goalless draw at Bari. This meant that they then had to beat Juventus to go through to the next round. They played well, scored thanks to an own goal in the second half but Juve equalised immediately and the match finished 1-1.
Lazio were still in the construction phase due to all the new players and in the first Serie A game of the season they had lost 4-2 at Verona. A dismal performance alleviated thanks to a late Laudrup brace.
Today was the first match at home. The last Serie A game at the Olimpico was against Lazio Milan on May 11 1980. A long wait for the Biancocelesti fans.
The match: Sunday, September 18, 1983, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Sunny day, full house, lots of expectation from the Lazio fans who were not going to be disappointed.
In the 14th minute Bruno Giordano to Michael Laudrup, ball to Giancarlo Marini, on the right just outside the box, who tried a shot, Walter Zenga parried. In the 22nd minute Laudrup was fouled just outside the area and the referee gave a free kick to the Biancocelesti. Giordano curled a shot between post and crossbar, nothing Zenga could do. Lazio 1 Inter 0.
Inter reacted immediately and a minute later Antonio Sabato hit the woodwork from outside the box. Then nothing more for the first half. Lazio in control and the Nerazzurri absent.
Since Inter were so dismal at creating chances, Marini tried to give them a hand. At the beginning of the second half he passed the ball back to Massimo Cacciatori, not realising that Alessandro Altobelli was lurking close by. The Inter centre-forward however was so surprised that he could not coordinate himself properly to beat Cacciatori and Lionello Manfredonia cleared. In the 53rd minute a Sabato-Aldo Serena one-two gave the midfielder a chance but his shot went wide.
In the 61st minute Lazio made it two. Laudrup on the left to Rinaldo Piraccini who crossed. Angelo Cupini all by himself in the middle of the box volleyed the ball into the goal.
In the 90th minute, Marini lobbed the ball over Sabato for Laudrup who did a coast-to-coast and beat Zenga for the third time.
Great win for Lazio, spectacular goals.
Who played for Lazio
Cacciatori, Miele, Vinazzani, Manfredonia, Batista (87’ Piscedda), Spinozzi, Cupini (79’ Vella), Marini, Giordano, Laudrup, Piraccini
Manager: Morrone
Who played for Inter
Zenga, Bergomi, Baresi I, Bagni, Collovati (50' Ferri II), Bini, Coeck, Sabato, Altobelli, Beccalossi, Serena (71' C.Muraro)
Substitutes: Recchi, H.Muller, Pasinato
Manager: Radice
Referee: Barbaresco
Goals: 22’ Giordano, 61’ Cupini, 90’ Laudrup
What happened next
There was great hope, but, with very few exceptions, Lazio were disappointing. In the first 12 games Lazio won three times, drew twice and lost all the remaining matches. Morrone was fired in December and replaced by Paolo Carosi, another former Lazio player.
After a controversial draw at home against Udinese, things went from bad to worse. At Ascoli, Giordano broke his leg following a ruthless tackle by Antonio Bogoni (who was not even booked). Lazio fell into despair, losing the Ascoli match as well as the next one at home against Pisa.
Lazio had only nine points after the first half of the season. Carosi realised that he must do something and he put his faith in the players with greater experience. Life without probably one of the best centre forwards in Europe would not be easy and there was no backup plan. At this point D’Amico and Manfredonia took matters in their own hands and stepped up to lead the team.
Lazio started earning points. In the first six games of the second half of the season they beat Genoa and Sampdoria at home and drew against Verona, Inter away (thanks to a Walter Zenga howler) and drew a dramatic derby 2-2.
Just when things were looking brighter, Lazio faltered again. The last four games became fundamental. Fortunately Giordano came back in record time. The week before the unlucky defeat against Fiorentina, a rumour spread that Lazio’s star player might be on the bench and possibly play the final minutes. Ten thousand fans travelled to Florence (including us!) in the hope of seeing their captain play. He came on with 20 minutes to go and this was the best possible news for Lazio.
The following match against Napoli saw Giordano regain his place in the centre of the Lazio attack. It took him just 30 seconds to score and the Biancocelesti managed to win the game 3-2. There was still hope.
Lazio then lost at Udine and in the final two games of the season needed three points to stay in Serie A. A win against Ascoli at home and a draw against Pisa with a Giordano brace did the job.
“We will never suffer like this again”, said Chinaglia at the end of Pisa-Lazio. Alas, this was only the beginning of the suffering.
Lazio 1983-84
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 35 |
Coppa Italia | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
Total | 35 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 38 |
Top five appearances
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Laudrup | 35 | 30 | 5 |
Vinazzani | 33 | 28 | 5 |
Spinozzi | 32 | 27 | 5 |
Manfredonia | 31 | 26 | 5 |
Batista | 30 | 25 | 5 |
D'Amico | 30 | 25 | 5 |
Top five goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Laudrup | 8 | 8 | - |
D'Amico | 8 | 7 | 1 |
Giordano | 8 | 8 | - |
Manfredonia | 4 | 4 | - |
Cupini | 3 | 3 | - |
Let’s talk about Joao Batista
Joao Batista Da Silva was born in Porto Alegre on March 8 1955. He began his career with Internacional Porto Alegre and stayed until 1981 winning three National championships and the Campeonato Gaucho four times. He was a very highly rated midfielder and played together with his Brazil teammate Paulo Roberto Falcao. In 1980 he won the Bola de Prata, an award given by the magazine Placar for the best players of the Brasileirao. In 1982, following disagreements with his club, he joined Internacional rivals Gremio and won another Bola de Prata. The year after he signed for Palmeiras.
In 1983 Lazio finally got back to Serie A after three years and hero Giorgio Chinaglia bought the club. After initially trying to get Junior, Long John decided on signing Batista.
That Lazio were not exactly the best team we’ve ever had, and Batista took some time to get used to European and Italian football. In his first year, the Biancocelesti struggled, changed manager half way through, from Giancarlo Morrone to Paolo Carosi, and avoided relegation with a draw in the last game. He played 33 games in Serie A and Coppa Italia with one goal against Sampdoria.
1984-85 was one of the worst seasons in Lazio history. Chinaglia decided to sack Carosi after just two games and called up Juan Carlos Lorenzo. Lorenzo was past his prime as far as managerial style was concerned and his third stint with Lazio was almost farcical. Daniele Filisetti was forced to lose 5 kilos in a week because Lorenzo wanted him to be the same weight as Trevor Francis who he had to mark in the next game. Filisetti fainted after the end of the first half. He was very superstitious to the point of insanity. He got the players to train by running after chickens. Once he told Giordano that when there was a free kick, he was supposed to go to the men in the wall and insult them. The plan was to get them agitated so that the wall would open and increase the chances of scoring. He also ordered Giordano to never shoot from outside the box again.
Lazio were relegated. Chinaglia got rid of Lorenzo too late and the duo Giancarlo Oddi-Roberto Lovati who substituted him could not do much. Batista appeared in 23 games during the season and scored a goal again against Sampdoria.
With the Biancoclesti in Serie B, Lazio sold Batista to Avellino but it did not go well and Joao appeared just 14 times in the League with one goal. But Avellino did win the 1986 Summer Tournament. It was a competition contested by the Serie A teams that had been eliminated from the Coppa Italia before the semi-finals. Avellino beat Bari in the final. Batista however did not play.
In 1987 he signed for Belenenses in Portugal but played very little. The next year he returned to Brazil and signed for Avai. He retired at the end of the season.
He had a good International career playing 38 times for Brazil. He played seven times in the World Cup of 1978 where Brazil came third and had an appearance in the 1982 World Cup in Spain. He came on in the second half of Brazil Argentina and was at the receiving end of a kick in the stomach from a very frustrated Diego Maradona.
Batista did not go into management but has since done punditry for the Brazilian TV channel RBS.
Joao Batista did not have a memorable stay with Lazio. He enjoyed the nightlife and the food, but his performances on the pitch were less lively. Lazio fans nevertheless remember him with a smile, there was so much hope when Chinaglia took over the club but it did not work out for him or Batista.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1983-84 | 30 (1) | 25 (1) | 5 |
1984-85 | 23 (1) | 18 (1) | 5 |
Total | 53 (2) | 43 (2) | 10 |
Sources
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