A half each and fair draw
Milan on top to start but Lazio better in second half
Also on this day: September 5, 1993, Reggiana Lazio 0-0. A goalless draw despite Lazio hitting the woodwork twice but Reggiana deserved the point. Player of the day Luca Luzardi
The season so far
The previous season had been pretty nondescript. Lazio had finished 14th and only been certain of survival after the penultimate game. The manager was Umberto Mannocci and top scorers were Nello Governato and Antonio Renna with 5 goals (4 in A).
This season Mannocci stayed on. There was not a lot of money so the transfers were few. Arriving were midfielder Giovanni Sacco (Juventus-on loan) plus forwards Nicola Ciccolo (Mantova) and a returning Orlando Rozzoni (Catania-end of loan). Leaving was midfielder Eugenio Fascetti (Messina, he would be back in 1986 as manager).
So far Lazio had played one game in Coppa Italia, winning 3-1 at Alessandria. Today was their Serie A debut.
Milan had finished 2nd the previous season under Swedish manager Nils Liedholm. Top scorer was Amarildo with 14 league goals.
This season the "Barone" Liedholm was still on the bench but the Rossoneri had been reasonably active on the summer transfer market.
The main new signings were defender Karl-Heinz Schnellinger (Roma), midfielders Nevio Scala (Roma - back from loan) and Sergio Maddė (Alessandria) plus forwards Angelo Sormani (Sampdoria) and Angelillo (Roma).
The main departures were midfielders Victor Benítez (Roma), Mario David (Sampdoria) plus forwards José Altafini (Napoli after 161 goals) and a young but future star Pierino Prati (Salernitana - on loan, he would be back).
For the Rossoneri this was the season's debut as they would not play in the Coppa Italia until January.
Considering the previous season and the new squads, Milan were favourites this afternoon.
The match: Sunday, September 5, 1965, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
A showery day in Rome meant the ground was wet and slippery. A decent 40,000 crowd had turned up with umbrellas and rain jackets.
Milan started on the front foot and hit the post after three minutes. It was an Amarildo left footed freekick that hit the woodwork with Idilio Cei beaten.
In the 9th minute the Lazio keeper saved Gianni Rivera's attempt from outside the box and a few minutes later cleared a dangerous low cross with his feet just before Mora or Amarildo could pounce.
Lazio showed their faces on the quarter hour mark. Vito D'Amato went on a good run but after beating several players he hesitated too long before shooting.
Milan had control but were not dangerous again until the half hour when Cei came off his line to interrupt a good Trapattoni-Sormani combination. The two were active again just before halftime but Sormani's header went half a metre wide. Halftime Lazio 0 Milan 0 but the visitors deserved more.
Things changed after the break. Lazio seemed to throw caution to the wind and at the beginning of the second half threatened several times. In the 48th minute Can Bartu took advantage of a Cesare Maldini blunder but fired over the bar from close range. Then D'Amato shaved the post with a dangerous shot.
The rain then intensified and this affected the game which had a lull period.
It came to life in the last twelve minutes when Lazio pushed for a winner. In the 78th minute Diego Zanetti had a long-range shot tipped over the bar by Barluzzi and in the 81st an excellent solitary run by Paolo Carosi was not finished off with the same quality. The last move was a flying Nicola Ciccolo-Bartu combination but the Turk then blasted over the bar. Full time Lazio 0 Milan 0.
Who played for Lazio
Manager: Mannocci
Who played for Milan
Barluzzi, Noletti, Schnellinger, Pelagalli, Maldini, Trapattoni, Mora, Lodetti, Amarildo, Rivera, Sormani
Manager: Liedholm
Referee: De Marchi
What happened next
Lazio finished 12th, only two points from relegation. The Biancocelesti won 8, drew 13 and lost 13. The highlights were beating Roma 1-0 (the other derby was 0-0) and Milan 2-0 away.
The return match with Milan was a bit of a saga as it was postponed twice due to fog, the first in the 54th minute on 0-0 and the second in the 67th with the Rossoneri 2-0 up. Lazio then won the third game. It must be said that right up to the early 90's games played in foggy conditions were often postponed in the second halves so as not to have to reimburse the tickets. Top scorer was Vito D'Amato with 7 league goals (including derby winner).
In Coppa Italia, Lazio went out to Catanzaro 1-3 away in the 3rd round.
Milan finished a disappointing 7th, not helped by the arrest in October of the owner Felice Riva for bankruptcy. Liedholm was replaced in mid-March by Giovanni Cattozzo. In the Coppa Italia Milan reached the quarter finals (Fiorentina 1-3 at home) while in the Fairs Cup they went out to Chelsea in the last 16 (with a flip of the coin, it was still all square after 3 matches). Top scorer was Angelo Sormani with 24 goals (21 in A).
Serie A was won by Inter, who also won the Intercontinental Cup. Serie B was the next destination for Varese, Catania and Sampdoria.
Lazio 1965-66
Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals scored |
Serie A | 34 | 8 | 13 | 13 | 28 |
Coppa Italia | 3 | 2 | - | 1 | 4 |
Total | 37 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 32 |
Top five appearances
Players | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
Vitali | 37 | 34 | 3 |
Zanetti | 36 | 34 | 2 |
Dotti | 35 | 32 | 3 |
D'Amato | 34 | 31 | 3 |
Pagni | 33 | 31 | 2 |
Cei | 33 | 30 | 3 |
Top goal scorers
Player | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
D'Amato | 7 | 7 | - |
Ciccolo | 6 | 5 | 1 |
Renna | 4 | 2 | 2 |
Let's talk about Nicola Ciccolo
Nicola Ciccolo was born in Taranto on April 10, 1940.
At 16 he joined the Messina youth sector and then debuted in the first team a year later and stayed five years.
The Giallorossi were in Serie B. They finished 16th, 10th, 8th, 6th and 7th. His managers were Ivo Fiorentini the first year, Bruno Arcari for three seasons and then, future Lazio, Umberto Mannocci in his last. Ciccolo played 89 league games for the Peloritani with 27 goals.
In 1962-63 he spent a season with Verona in Serie B. The manager was Guido Tavellin and the Gialloblu finished 7th and reached the Coppa Italia semi-finals (Torino 1-2). He played 34 league games with 17 goals and 3 in Coppa Italia with another 3 goals.
His goal scoring earned him a call by Italian champions Inter for the 1963-64 season. The manager was Helenio "Il Mago" Herrera and the Nerazzurri lost the Scudetto in the first and last ever playoff, 0-2 to Bologna. Inter however triumphed in the European Cup beating Real Madrid 3-1. Ciccolo played 10 league games with 4 goals (Torino, Catania, Messina, Catania), 1 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Torino) and 2 in the European Cup with 1 goal (winner vs Monaco). He faced stern competition in attack by Jair, Milani and Mazzola. One of his teammates was former Lazio Carlo Tagnin (1958-59).
In 1964-65 he spent a season with Mantova in Serie A. The managers were Oscar Montez (1-5), Giovanni Bonanno (6-7) and then Giacomo Mari (8-34) and the Biancorossi were relegated. Ciccolo played 25 league games and was top scorer with 10 goals (Messina x2, Atalanta x2, Torino, Cagliari, Bologna, Atalanta, Lazio, Varese). One of his teammates was a young Dino Zoff.
In 1965 he joined Lazio. The manager was Umberto Mannocci from his Messina days. Lazio finished 12th and the highlights were winning a derby 1-0 and beating Milan 2-0 away. Ciccolo played 27 league games with 5 goals (Torino, Varese, Foggia, SPAL, Napoli) and 3 games in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (Alessandria).
In the summer of 1966, he left Lazio and signed for Vicenza where he stayed for six seasons. The Biancorossi were in Serie A and finished 13th, 12th, 12th, 8th, 8th and 12th. He played 86 league games with 8 goals (Roma x2, Cagliari, Foggia, Lazio, Milan,Torino, Atalanta) and 4 games in Coppa Italia with 2 goals. His managers included Arturo Silvestri, Umberto Menti and Ettore Puricelli while his teammates included Lazio connections, Mario Maraschi (1961-64), Nello Governato (1961-66), Diego Zanetti (1961-69), Carlo Facchin (1971-72), Oscar Damiani (1985-86) and Luis Vinicio (manager 1976-78).
In 1972-73 he played a season with Verona in Serie A. The Scaligeri finished 10th under Giancarlo Cadè. Ciccolo played 16 league games and 3 in the Anglo-Italian Cup but failed to score.
He then played for Chievo Verona for five seasons between 1973 and 1978. The Clivensi were in Promozione (5th tier) and finished 11th, 1st (promoted to D), 10th, 14th and 8th. Ciccolo only played 26 league games with 21 goals as between 1974 and 1978 he was player-manager
In 1978-79 he spent one last season with Legnano in Serie D as player-manager. The Biancoblu finished 14th and he played 6 league games.
At 39 he then retired.
In his youth, in 1959, he played 4 games for Italy U21's and won the Mediterranean Games.
Ciccolo was a forward. He had a good club career scoring almost 100 goals. He won a European Cup with Inter.
At Lazio he stayed only one year but did well. He played regularly and scored 5 goals.
His younger brother of two years Ennio was also a footballer and played for Messina in the 1960's.
In the 1980's Nicola Ciccolo went into politics and was a councillor in Verona for the PSDI (Social Democrats). He is still alive today.
Lazio Career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1965-66 | 30 (6) | 27 (5) | 3 (1) |
Sources
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