Having suffered a disappointing 3-1 defeat against Feyenoord in the UEFA Champions League in midweek, Lazio manager Maurizio Sarri will have been hoping for an immediate response against a Fiorentina side that coasted to a 6-0 UEFA Europa Conference League triumph over Cukaricki.
Throughout the first half, there were glimpses of attacking threat from the Biancocelesti as they found themselves in a couple of promising positions. However, their end product was severely lacking, something no more evident than when Luis Alberto thrashed an effort into the side netting from close range.
The visitors, meanwhile, were far closer to breaking the deadlock before the interval. They did have the ball in the back of the net once through summer signing Lucas Beltran, but the Argentine handled the ball before calmly rounding Ivan Provedel and tapping into an empty net, ensuring the strike was ruled out.
The centre-forward also hit the post with a header as he looked to add to his two goals in European competition on Thursday, his first for his new club.
After the break, the hosts were by far the more dangerous. After firing an effort well over the crossbar, Taty Castellanos’ shot and turn was parried to safety by Pietro Terracciano, who also denied Alberto’s low effort with his feet around the midway point of the half.
Still, even despite the introduction of the prolific Immobile, Lazio initially continued to toil in front of goal, while Provedel protected his clean sheet with relatively easy stops from M’Bala Nzola and Maxime Lopez.
Just as it seemed the two sides would need to settle for a share of the spoils, Matías Vecino’s header struck Nikola Milenkovic’s outstretched arm in the penalty area, convincing referee Matteo Marcenaro to point to the spot. From 12 yards, Immobile kept his cool, burying into the corner for his third goal of the season.
The end result provides a significant boost to Lazio’s top-four quest, especially against a side that is likely to be a fellow contender. For Vincenzo Italiano’s side, though, this is a cruel defeat, and they will need to recover quickly considering they host second-placed Juventus at the Stadio Artemio Franchi this coming weekend.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Matteo Guendouzi (Lazio)
