Serie A: LAZIO-CATANIA, Sunday, 2-11--08

2 words: three points!

uhhhhhhhhhh
dont know what to say this will be a hard game.
i watched undinese and catania and must say catania are impresive.
furthermore, catania are very weak on the left hand side and they tend to attack throught the middle and not the wings (my opinion from the game).

Forza Lazio

Catania have a good squad this season and a good coach in Walter Zenga and deserve to be sitting well in Serie A so it will definitely be no easy match. Although they lost to Udinese they still gave a good performance and will be hard to break down. In 9 games they have scored 9 goals and conceded 7 so I expect their game plan will be one to hold Lazio close and so will probably be a tight score in the end. Their defense is good as concede less than a goal a match but their attack is average with a goal a game. With Mauri and Foggia back after their suspensions and Rocchi also returning earlier than expected (against Chievo), it will help Rossi in selecting the best team possible. Any other news?

FORZA LAZIO!!!!

Bobbi wrote:

Catania have a good squad this season and a good coach in Walter Zenga and deserve to be sitting well in Serie A so it will definitely be no easy match. Although they lost to Udinese they still gave a good performance and will be hard to break down. In 9 games they have scored 9 goals and conceded 7 so I expect their game plan will be one to hold Lazio close and so will probably be a tight score in the end. Their defense is good as concede less than a goal a match but their attack is average with a goal a game. With Mauri and Foggia back after their suspensions and Rocchi also returning earlier than expected (against Chievo), it will help Rossi in selecting the best team possible. Any other news?

FORZA LAZIO!!!!

I think Foggia and Mauri are suspended for 2 games, that mean a game against Catania too.

It will be very difficult match but I also think that we can get all tree points here. Zenga impressed me with his coaching ability since his time in Red Star Belgrade and if Rossi leave, he would be my choise.

FORZA LAZIO!!!

we need a win. we can surely beat Catania. Mauri and Foggia will be back and i would like to see Rocchi from minute 1.

deZio wrote:

I think Foggia and Mauri are suspended for 2 games, that mean a game against Catania too.

They were but they both got their appeals over turned so only 1 match, not 2. They missed Chievo but are available to Rossi for the Catania game.

Catania have very strong defense.
The most difficult part would be to break through , if we manage to score first we will win it easily.
Otherwise, if we don't , we can expect something similar as the game with Lecce.

After Catania defeat at home and our win away, I think psychologically we have a better approach to this match.

Zarate Rocchi Inzaghi( and then Pandev)
Foggia
Ledesma Dabo
Lich Rozhenal Cribari Kolarov
uhmmmm
Muslera.( give some time to think to Carrizo)

Am i crazy? Yes i am .

Paolo, you don't need to state the obvious. WE all know you're crazy.

A few things - Catania is 1 point behind us (as you all know) and they play some good football. They're fairly reserved when it comes to their attack, but make their opportunities count. They have a very good defense. I believe they've only given up about 7. With that said, they tend to be very reserved when on the road. They haven't scored more than 1 goal away from home in any of their away matches...and have draw 3x and lost once (to Inter). This is a match where we NEED to control the tempo. Catania has scored 9 goals this entire season where as we have almost DOUBLED that. So, we know we can score. We just need to defend and keep that Catania streak of 1 goal or none in check.

At home - we should get the 3!!!!

usampa wrote:

Catania have very strong defense.
The most difficult part would be to break through , if we manage to score first we will win it easily.
Otherwise, if we don't , we can expect something similar as the game with Lecce.

I agree whit you, if we score the first goal in the game we will have it in our hands, and in the end we will stand whit 3 points.

Like Emertico said about Carrizo, I agree whit that to. He need to think more, like Ledesma.

Carrizo's concentration has been poor all season. It's difficult to judge how bad this defence is when JP and Sebastiano have made, what I would consider 2 or 3 big mistakes each:

I would go with this tactic I think:



On first glance it looks unusual and very risky but let me explain why I would go for this. Catania will keep the game close early on and that gives us two options: attack with what we have got or just keep it close. Dabo and Mauri have been unreliable so I would take a risk on Kolarov and Foggia. If we come under pressure, Kolarov could go back to the left back position and we can guard the goal with a 5 man defence. Another possibility is to drop Mauri into the midfield and go with a 4-4-2 formation. We won't know until the whistle blows how Catania plan to defeat us so I think it is important to devise an adaptable tactic and as much as mine looks dangerous, I feel it would give them quite a headache.

I have every faith in that back four as well. Oh, and i don't plan to win without a goalkeeper, it's just I don't know who to put there.

Go for win No surrender

I want just say.. Forza Pandev

Uragano wrote:

Paolo, you don't need to state the obvious. WE all know you're crazy.

A few things - Catania is 1 point behind us (as you all know) and they play some good football. They're fairly reserved when it comes to their attack, but make their opportunities count. They have a very good defense. I believe they've only given up about 7. With that said, they tend to be very reserved when on the road. They haven't scored more than 1 goal away from home in any of their away matches...and have draw 3x and lost once (to Inter). This is a match where we NEED to control the tempo. Catania has scored 9 goals this entire season where as we have almost DOUBLED that. So, we know we can score. We just need to defend and keep that Catania streak of 1 goal or none in check.

At home - we should get the 3!!!!

Yeah, I fully agree with you!

It won't be an easy game, but Lazio play good in games like this so I'm pretty confident that we will take all 3 points!

I do not know much about catania this season, but they seem strong out of what I have read and heard about them. We need a win here so, the table will slowly be divided and we need to create a gap between us and teams that are close to us now to be able to gain some kind of a psychological advantage that we will be fighting for the spots in Europe. As it is now, one win could see us advance quite a few positions, just as a lost will see us drop a few places.

Zenga has probably studied how other teams managed to get points against us, and he is an ex-goalie so he puts the defence first. What we need to do is to bring on players that can hold the ball and create a game where we push themm back and create loads of chances without needing to start far back in our own half over and over again. A counter-attack game is not an option this game (it very much felt that was what we aimed at last night, at least in the first half...) and we need the players for this. Maybe we should try the 3-5-2 (3412) formation? then we would hold the midfield as well having strong atackers...

----------------Carrizo (we must trust him...)

-----------Rozehnal ---Siviglia ----- Radu


------Licthy/De Silvestri----Brocchi-----Mauri------ Kolarov

-------------------------------------Foggia

-----------------------Pandev ------------------------- zarate


I want rocchi to play, but I am not sure he is ready to be a starter yet. Also, we need a good option to throw in if things are not as good as they should in HT. Siviglia will play, no matter how much I dislike him. If we want to gamble a bit we throw in mauri instead of Ledesma to show out vice-captain it is time to wake up as well as avoiding our game being created from the back all the time but rather try to keep the game on their half of the pitch. Having Kolarov and Lichty/De Silvestri fileded secures our defence as they will fall back when needed. Maybe too many changes? probably, but we need to get the three points, we need to play an attacking game and we need to give Ledesma a warning. No Matuzalem or Meghni means Mauri is the only option to take the midfield position...

Caxi, Erme - why dont you want to play Pandev? He was ok last games, for example, instead of Mauri (and also, imo, Foggia). I think we should play for Zarate - Pandev duo to make their connection more useful. Now they play good together, maybe not worse then Goran-Rocchi last year, and I think they can grow both and as a duo. And now, when Rocchi is not in his best, he can be useful sub, with Simone, for Zarate'n'Pandev.

Carrizo is a great keeper and needs to play often so he can get used to italian football.

I think we can get 3 points here, they are a strong side but we have most of our important players back.

Carrizo
Lich - Rozenhal - Cribari - Radu
Foggia - Brocchi - Ledesma
Zarate - Pandev
Rocchi

Carrizo

Lorenzo Rozehnal Cribari Radu

Lichti Brocchi Kolarov

Foggia

Zarate Pandev

Alvares wrote:

Caxi, Erme - why dont you want to play Pandev? He was ok last games, for example, instead of Mauri (and also, imo, Foggia). I think we should play for Zarate - Pandev duo to make their connection more useful. Now they play good together, maybe not worse then Goran-Rocchi last year, and I think they can grow both and as a duo. And now, when Rocchi is not in his best, he can be useful sub, with Simone, for Zarate'n'Pandev.

Important things for me in this game is we create chances and take them. With that in mind, I think we need a midfield that can give them trouble. I have confidence that the back four can hold Catania but I'm not so confident the midfield of the last, say, 5 games can actually cause them problems. Therefore I would use Kolarov and Foggia in midfield to give them some problems. Someone already adhered to the fact that Catania seem to focus on going down the middle so I think we should take the game to them out wide. Mauri as treq with two direct forwards and an attacking midfield should be good because Mauri can provide stability if he has a good game. I know it is an unusual tactic and I know Delio won't use it but it's what I would do if I were in his shoes.

---Muslera
Lich-Siviglia-Rozenhal-Radu
Brocchi-Ledesma:( -Kolarov
-------Foggia----------------
Zarate----Rocchi---- Second half iin whit Inzhagi

maybe like this if you want

-------------Siviglia---------
----Lollo--Roz---Cribari----Radu--
---Licht----Diakite----Kolarov----
------------FOGGIA--------------
-----Zarate-------Rocchi--------



If seriously, we cant play with Licht and Kolarov in mf. They both are good as derenders, who can join some attacks, but not good as pure midfielders.

no reason why Kola can't play inside left! If he can play LB and LM, he can do LCM. LCM is all about being able to defend a bit, get forward a bit, link the play, go out wide every once in a while, have the odd shot and keep possession. Kola can do that if you ask me.

now Diakite in midfield would be ridiculous

Caxi wrote:

Alvares wrote:

Caxi, Erme - why dont you want to play Pandev? He was ok last games, for example, instead of Mauri (and also, imo, Foggia). I think we should play for Zarate - Pandev duo to make their connection more useful. Now they play good together, maybe not worse then Goran-Rocchi last year, and I think they can grow both and as a duo. And now, when Rocchi is not in his best, he can be useful sub, with Simone, for Zarate'n'Pandev.

Important things for me in this game is we create chances and take them. With that in mind, I think we need a midfield that can give them trouble. I have confidence that the back four can hold Catania but I'm not so confident the midfield of the last, say, 5 games can actually cause them problems. Therefore I would use Kolarov and Foggia in midfield to give them some problems. Someone already adhered to the fact that Catania seem to focus on going down the middle so I think we should take the game to them out wide. Mauri as treq with two direct forwards and an attacking midfield should be good because Mauri can provide stability if he has a good game. I know it is an unusual tactic and I know Delio won't use it but it's what I would do if I were in his shoes.

You are right about midfield, but I wonder of strikers. If we'll play Mauri, and he will be not bad, I think we have to play Zarate and Pandev with him. Like they played first 5 games this season and got results (then Mauri played worse from game to game, and its on of the reasons why we lost some games).

Alvares wrote:

maybe like this if you want

-------------Siviglia---------
----Lollo--Roz---Cribari----Radu--
---Licht----Diakite----Kolarov----
------------FOGGIA--------------
-----Zarate-------Rocchi--------



If seriously, we cant play with Licht and Kolarov in mf. They both are good as derenders, who can join some attacks, but not good as pure midfielders.

YES, i also want Siviglia in the goal