Maurizio Sarri’s Lazio were in the driving seat as they raced to a comfortable 2-0 win against Hellas Verona.
The Biancocelesti came into the match keen to maintain their momentum after a thrilling 4-2 win in their Europa League opener against Feyenoord earlier in the week, and they certainly didn’t disappoint in front of their home fans.
Lazio immediately came out on the front foot and the first 45 minutes of the match saw them desperately try to break the deadlock, controlling 63% of the ball and having six shots to Verona’s four.
Toma Basic came closest to opening the scoring in the first half but he was denied by a wonderful stop from Lorenzo Montipo, who tipped the ball onto the post to deny the Croat.
The Roman club escaped danger after a Gialloblu corner almost saw Thomas Henry sneak in an opener, only for the ball to bounce safely off the bar and behind. Despite the best efforts of both sides, the first half ended all square at 0-0.
Things finally started to connect for the home side in the second half and not long after the hour mark star striker Ciro Immobile made the difference, netting a close range header after an accurate cross by Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
Lazio remained charged up but they couldn’t double their lead, making things a little tense as the minutes started to tick by and Verona dreamed of an equaliser.
Things were put to bed in the dying minutes of the match, when Luis Alberto squeezed a low-range shot through the Verona defence to beat a leaping Montipo, securing all three points for Sarri’s side.
It was a confident and enjoyable display by Lazio, who thoroughly deserved their win on a warm Rome evening. The stats reflect this too, with the home side finishing with 60% of the ball, 1.09 xG to Verona’s 0.34, 15 shots to seven and 400 accurate passes to 229.
