STADIO ENNIO TARDINI (Parma) – Lazio extended their unbeaten run in Serie A to 18 games on Sunday evening with a hard-fought 1-0 win at Parma.
The Biancocelesti have now beaten the Gialloblu in each of their last seven encounters, including wins on their last three visits to the Tardini.
Felipe Caicedo got the game’s only goal in the first half, but both sides had their chances to add more throughout.
Parma came out to hit Lazio and both Gianluca Caprari and Jasmin Kurtic looked to trouble Thomas Strakosha early on but neither managed to find the target with their long-range efforts.
Ciro Immobile showed at the other end that he needs to be watched at all times, finding enough space to head a Jony cross wide.
Kurtic forced a good save from Strakosha with a free-kick before Simone Iacoponi turned a header wide at the near post but that was where Parma’s chances stopped for the first half.
Immobile passed up a big chance as he fired wide cutting in from the right, Lucas Leiva fired a shot way over the crossbar and Caicedo missed another that he should have done better with.
The breakthrough came, unsurprisingly, through a combination of Immobile and Caicedo. The current capocannoniere was on the end of a cross but, marked by two Crociati defenders, the ball just squirmed between them and fell to Caicedo who fired home a volley from close range.
Riccardo Gagliolo had a big chance to level in the second half but after taking his time at the back post his half-volley was deflected wide.
Parma had calls for a penalty waved away as Caprari and Gagliolo again had chances saved and blocked but Dejan Kulusevski’s introduction saw them lift their tempo.
Another chance fell Gagliolo’s way that he should have done more with. Juraj Kucka forced Strakosha into a good save with a powerful drive from the right. The rebound fell at the feet of the defender but he scuffed his effort wide.
Immobile almost punished him immediately at the other end but put his own attempt into the Lazio fans behind Simone Colombi’s goal.
Mattia Sprocati fired over late on before Parma called for a penalty again in stoppage time as they felt Andres Cornelius was fouled in the area but a free-kick was given Lazio’s way.
Kulusevski wasted a counterattack by blazing a shot over the crossbar but came close to making up for that seconds later when he narrowly missed finding the top corner.
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com
