Lazio stumble ahead of Italian Cup showdown against Juve
Lazio stumbled ahead of next week’s Italian Cup final showdown against Juventus falling to a 3-2 Serie A defeat at Fiorentina on Saturday.
Second-half strikes from Khouma Babacar and Nikola Kalinic, and a Cristiano Lombardi own goal sealed three points which kept Fiorentina’s Europa League hopes alive.
Keita Balde’s 55th-minute opener for Lazio, his seventh in four games, had Fiorentina hanging their heads in desperation and staring at a possible third defeat from their past five games.
But Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi rested several key players ahead of the Cup final date with treble-chasing Juventus, and Paulo Sousa’s hosts capitalised to claim a precious win that sent them up to seventh, one point behind Europa League-chasing AC Milan, who were held 1-1 away to fifth-placed Atalanta.
Gerard Deulofeu got the equaliser for Milan three minutes from time after prolific goal-scoring defender Andrea Conti’s opener just before the break -- his eighth of the season.
The result ensured Atalanta qualify for next season’s Europa League after a 26-year absence from continental competition.
In Florence, Babacar spurned a chance to level moments after Balde’s strike when Lazio goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha sent a clearance straight to the Senegal striker but made amends by tipping his curling drive to safety.
But Strakosha was left stunned when the big centre-forward pulled Fiorentina level minutes later with a header at the keeper’s near post. Sousa, who according to reports could be replaced by ousted Inter Milan coach Stefano Pioli, made a series of substitutions that added impetus in a busy finale.
Strakosha blocked a Matias Vecino snapshot, and although Viola keeper Ciprian Tatarusanu was happy to see Gil Patric’s deflected effort come off the upright, Fiorentina had the momentum. Strakosha did well to parry a Cristian Tello strike, but it came off Lazio man Stefan Radu and became an assist for Kalinic as the Croatian fired the hosts into a 2-1 lead on 73 minutes.