“Lazio kicked off the Maurizio Sarri era with a 3-1 win against newly promoted Empoli, where Sarri coached from 2012 to 2015 and led to promotion. Their final match before September’s international break saw them host Spezia, coached by Thiago Motta following Vincenzo Italiano’s departure to Fiorentina in the summer. Whilst Spezia started in a 3-4-3 formation, Sarri continued with his traditional 4-3-3 formation, making just two changes: Luis Alberto came in for Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro on the left side of midfield, whilst Patric started on the right side of central defense in the place of Luiz Felipe. Lazio started off with a 4-4-2 high-block pressing scheme, with Felipe Anderson joining Ciro Immobile up top whilst Pedro dropped deeper to the wing. This was a flexible shape as Sergej Milinković-Savić often stepped out from midfield to press, which then saw Anderson drop back to a wider, deeper position. …”
Breaking the Lines
Tactical analysis analyze Lazio Empoli
NY Times – Maurizio Sarri: Chelsea’s Tuscan Son (Aug. 2018)
W – Maurizio Sarri
