Lazio’s Europa League campaign properly kicked off with a 2-0 win over Lokomotiv Moscow last night.
The Biancocelesti rose to second in Group E after last night’s win, with goals from Croatian midfielder Toma Basic and Spanish defender Patric securing the key three points.
Below are the two starting XI’s in the match:
- Lazio (4-3-3): Thomas Strakosha; Manuel Lazzari, Patric, Francesco Acerbi, Elseid Hysaj; Luis Alberto, Danilo Cataldi, Toma Basic; Pedro, Ciro Immobile, Felipe Anderson.
- Lokomotiv Moscow (4-4-2): Guilherme; Dmitri Zhivoglyadov, Dmitri Barinov, Pablo, Dmitri Rybchinskii; Alexis Beka Beka, Konstantin Maradishvili, Rifat Zhemaletdinov, Daniil Kulikov; Fedor Smolov, Tino Anjorin.
Video: Patric Scores Lazio’s Second Goal Against Lokomotiv Moscow
Lazio started the first half against Lokomotiv Moscow well, with Luis Alberto finding an early chance to force a save from Guilherme.
In the 13th minute the Biancocelesti took the lead, with a strong attacking move by Pedro leading to a goal for Basic, who netted his first goal for Lazio to make it 1-0.
Immobile got close to doubling the Roman club’s lead only a couple of minutes later, but his shot went just wide.
Lokomotiv Moscow’s first real chance came in the 27th minute but Smolov couldn’t finish the chance, letting Lazio off the hook.
In the 38th minute Lazio’s lead was doubled, with Guilherme making a mistake on a corner, allowing Patric to poke the ball into the back of the net to make it 2-0.
Immobile came off a minute later, asking for a change as he was suffering from muscle problems. The injury isn’t expected to be serious, however. Vedat Muriqi came on in his place.
Muriqi had a chance before half time, forcing the Lokomotiv defence into action.
Video: Toma Basic Puts Lazio Ahead Against Lokomotiv in Europa League Clash
The second half was a closer affair, with Lokomotiv having an early chance with a long shot from Zhemaletdinov, which just went over the crossbar.
Pedro hit the crossbar in the 64th minute, latching onto a pass at the edge of the penalty area and shooting a well-placed shot.
In the 75th minute Lazio had two quick chances, first with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and then from Felipe Anderson, but both failed to close out the game.
In the final few minutes Lazio remained in control, with the 2-0 outcome seeming certain by the twilight of the match.
