BEVERLY HILLS, November 08, (THEWILL) – Ecuadorian centre forward Felipe Caicedo was Lazio’s hero as his last-gasp strike cancelled out striker Cristiano Ronaldo’s goal in a 1-1 draw against Juventus at Stadio Olimpico on Sunday.
In the absence of super striker Ciro Immobile, the hosts lacked bite going forward. Immobile was unfortunately one of three Lazio players, the others being Lucas Leiva and Thomas Strakhosha, absent after reportedly returning inconclusive coronavirus tests.
Ronaldo, who only returned last week after his own isolation due to COVID-19 with a double against Spezia, scored a sixth Serie A goal of the campaign after barely 15 minutes.
Juve had started probing a couple of times early on but Ronaldo’s goal was their first meaningful attack. The Portuguese star stuck out a leg to divert home Juan Cuadrado’s drilled cross, after the Colombian had done great work down the right wing.
Lazio displayed hallmarks of a good side missing their best attacking weapon. With just a little good fortune, Kosovo centre forward Vedat Muriqi would have got on the end of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s teasing header across the face of goal.
Fortune was on Lazio’s side, though, when Ronaldo smacked the right post in the 42nd minute and then forced Pepe Reina in the Lazio goal into a smart stop with a stinging free-kick in the extra time of the first 45 minutes.
Ronaldo and Montenegro right midfielder Adam Marusic exchanged efforts, while Frenchman Adrien Rabiot tested Reina in a second half that struggled to ignite.
In a move that shocked even the star player himself, Pirlo withdrew Ronaldo with 14 minutes to go. An ankle sprain was later confirmed.
His team-mates looked to have completed the job without him but Caicedo turned in the box and picked out the bottom-right corner after collecting Argentine Joaquin Correa’s pass in a dramatic finale not befitting the rest of the game.
In the light of the final results, with just a slender 1-0 lead, the decision to substitute their best forward may not have been the wisest one, even considering the fact that he was nursing some ankle pain.
Lazio’s results give evidence of how much they miss their brilliant forward. Immobile was also unavailable for the midweek 1-1 Champions League draw against Zenit and Lazio are having to go without the cutting edge of their striker who scored 36 Serie A goals last term.
Muriqi was game enough but only one of his three efforts was on target and manager Simone Inzaghi replaced his striker with Felipe Caicedo after 54 minutes. What a substitution that proved to be.
Juve will be back in action after the international break at home to Cagliari, while Lazio’s first assignment will be a trip to Crotone.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
