Lazio Defy The Odds Against Bayern Munich In The UCL As Zdenek Zeman Lands In The Hospital Again
Written By Onyeka Daniel
It was a dream result today for Italian Serie A side, Lazio in the UEFA Champions League knockout stage against Bayern Munich at the Stadio Olimpico. The home side, seen as the underdog in this matchup also lost one of their experienced players in the buildup to the game.
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Uruguayan midfielder, Matias Vecino picked up a knock in the warm-up and Danilo Cataldi stepped in at the last minute. The Bavarians had much of the possessions, but they couldn’t break down %Lazio’s defense as the first half ended goalless.
Lazio were a bit adventurous in the second half without leaving their defense open and this seemingly paid off as got a penalty. The game changed in the 67th minute when Ciro Immobile went on a mazy run through a crowd of players, rolled it across for Isaksen, who was upended by Upamecano.
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The referee awarded a penalty and also a red card, as Upamecano caught Isaksen studs-up on the inside of the ankle. The Lazio striker and captain kept his cool to convert, sending Manuel Neuer the wrong way to roll it into the near bottom corner and give Lazio the lead against 10-man Bayern. They managed to hang on to the win to take a step towards qualifying for the next round.
It was Immobile’s ninth goal in just 12 career Champions League appearances for Lazio. The second leg will be in Munich on March 5 and Lazio have a 1-0 lead with no away goals rule, so if they lose by any one-goal margin, it will go to extra time. Immobile admitted that giving Lazio the Champions League knockout round win is ‘what we dream of as children.’
“I was convinced this team would give everything, we wanted to give a wonderful night to these people and we did it,” he said in his post match interview after the win. “It’s a pity we didn’t make more of our other scoring opportunities, especially going into the second leg, but this is good.
“Playing fixtures like this gives you such emotion and sharing it with these fans is what we dream of as children.” “We prepared this game to win, even if we had only a 10 per cent chance, we still would’ve given our all.” He further added.
Meanwhile…
Pescara announced that former Roma, Lazio and Foggia coach Zdenek Zeman is back in hospital weeks after suffering a stroke. The tactician will not be on the bench for the next Serie C match against Vis Pesaro, so his management staff will take over, led by assistant manager Giovanni Bucaro.
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Zeman had suffered a stroke last month and returned to work, but a statement from the club confirmed he was taken back into hospital after overseeing this afternoon’s training session. The club cardiologist examined Zeman and was sufficiently concerned to suggest he be kept under observation while further tests are conducted.
Zeman is set to celebrate his 77th birthday in May and was always famous for his chain-smoking on the bench, back in the era when that was allowed on the touchline in Serie A. Some of his previous clubs include Foggia, Lazio, Roma, Fenerbahce, Napoli Cagliari, Lecce, Red Star Belgrade and FC Lugano.
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