This week we remember the fantastic win in the Super Coppa 2009 in Beijing, several pre-season friendlies, and the passing of Orlando Rozzoni.
Matches of the Week
Date: Monday, August 5, 2002
Venue: Pride Stadium Park, Derby
Fixture: Derby County Lazio 1-2, pre-season friendly
An evenly balanced game is decided by a Crespo winner.
Date: Saturday, August 5, 2000
Venue: Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam
Fixture: Lazio Barcelona 3-3, Amsterdam Tournament
Lazio were 3-1 up at halftime but the Blaugrana fight back to clinch draw and win tournament.
Date: Sunday, August 9, 1992
Venue: Parkstadion, Gelsenkirchen
Fixture: Schalke 04 Lazio 1-3, pre-season friendly
Two goals by Teutonic striker Riedle give Lazio victory in Germany.
Date: Saturday, August 11, 2002
Venue: White Hart Lane, London
Fixture: Tottenham Hotspur-Lazio 2-2, pre-season friendly
Lazio concede early but come back from two goals down to draw at White Hart Lane.
Date: Thursday, August 11, 2011
Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Fixture: Lazio Real Sociedad 2-0, pre-season friendly
An early goal by Cissé and a late one by Sculli sink Basque visitors.
Match In Focus
Date: Saturday, August 8, 2009
Venue: Beijing National Stadium, Beijing
Fixture: Inter Lazio 1-2, Super Coppa
In August of 2008, Lazio flew to Beijing to play Inter for the Italian Supercoppa. The Biancocelesti were surprise winners of the Coppa Italia and had to meet the mighty Inter who had comfortably won the scudetto. There was hope but also the awareness that the Nerazzurri were by far stronger than Lazio.
The Biancocelesti had a new manager, Davide Ballardini, and were without Goran Pandev, Cristian Ledesma and Lorenzo De Silvestri, who had all refused to renew their contracts and had fallen out with President Claudio Lotito.
The first half was fairly balanced. Inter had had their chances but so had Lazio. In the 62nd minute, the Biancocelesti scored. Free kick from thirty metres almost dead centre, Aleksandar Kolarov went for the big shot, the ball first hit the wall, then another Inter player and arrived to Francelino Matuzalem in a favourable position. His volley was parried by Julio Cesar but it ricocheted back off the Lazio player’s face and went in. Four minutes later the Biancocelesti doubled their lead. Stefano Mauri, just inside the Inter half, sent a great ball to Tommaso Rocchi who chested it down and before Christian Chivu or Lucio could intervene sent a wonderful lob over Julio Cesar and into the net.
Inter reacted and put Lazio under siege. They pulled one back with Eto’o, but the Biancocelesti managed to defend their slim advantage and triumph.
Lazio won their third Supercoppa.
In Memory: Orlando Rozzoni
Orlando Rozzoni was a massive centre forward for the time, similar, so they say, to Christian Vieri if one wants to have a general idea.
Born in Treviglio near Bergamo on July 23, 1937, he joined Lazio in 1959. He immediately became a fan favourite. He was big, powerful, a classic old-fashioned centre forward. He was nicknamed “Orlando Furioso” like the main character of the Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto.
His first year was a good one: 13 goals and a good feeling with his attacking partner Humberto Tozzi. Year two was not so good, not for him personally, but the team was relegated to Serie B. Lazio, in economic difficulty, in 1961 were forced to sell him to Udinese. He came back after a year and was decisive in Lazio’s promotion.
He played 100 games for Lazio (74 in Serie A, 20 in Serie B and 6 in Coppa Italia) scoring 41 goals (26 in Serie A, 10 in Serie B and 5 in Coppa Italia).
He never stopped being a fan favourite and Lazio Club Milan is named after him and Renzo Garlaschelli.
He died on August 7, 2009.
Birthdays This Week
- Claudio Bandoni, 5/8/1939, goalkeeper, Italian, 43 appearances (1971-72)
- Enrico Burlando, 5/8/1944, midfielder, Italian, 24 appearances (1966-67)
- Daichi Kamada, 5/8/1956, midfielder, Japan, 38 appearances, 2 goals (2023-24)
- Danilo Cataldi, 6/8/1994, midfielder, Italy, 246 appearances, 10 goals (2014-17, 2018-24)
- Roberto Tavola, 7/8/1957, midfielder, Italy, 25 appearances (1982-83)
- Alessandro Murgia, 9/8/1996, midfielder, Italy, 49 appearances, 4 goals (2016-19)
- Francesco Colonnese, 10/8/1971, defender, Italy, 29 appearances (2000-03)
- Luigi Boccolini, 11/8/1946, midfielder, Italy, 17 appearances, 1 goal (1977-78)
- Giovanni Di Veroli, 11/8/1932, defender, Italy, 54 appearances (1952-58)
This Article Was Written by Dag Jenkins & Simon Basten from Lazio Stories. More Information on the Above Matches and Players can be found on LazioStories.com.
