Cardiff City 2 - 3 Lazio. Match Report

Margetson, Weston, Vidmar, Bullock, Page, Gabbidon, Robinson, Kavanagh, Lee, Earnshaw, Langley. Subs: Warner, Collins, Barker, Campbell, Parry, Croft.

Att 12356.

CITY SCORED TWO CRACKING GOALS, TOTALLY DOMINATED THE FIRST HALF BEFORE TIRING IN THE SECOND PERIOD AS THE VISITORS FOUND AN EXTRA NOTCH BUT WILL HAVE TO REFLECT ON MORE COSTLY DEFENSIVE MISTAKES. TWELVE GOALS CONCEDED IN 6 PRE-SEASON FRIENDLIES REALLY DOES NOT BODE WELL FOR THE SEASON AHEAD.

With local temperatures hitting the 80's in the day, the evening was very humid and sticky and a crowd of 12,566 was an excellent attendance for, so-called "European Festival of Football" or not, was still just a pre-season friendly and City's second game at Ninian Park in 3 days.

Lennie Lawrence pronounced his starting line-up for the game would most likely be his starting eleven for the Crewe opening league - oh sorry, Coca Cola Championship! - outing at the weekend. Injuries to Willie Boland and Peter Thorne plus a possible new signing in Sean Gregan may change that but City started with Margetson, Weston-Page- Gabbidon-Vidmar, Langley-Bullock-Kavanagh-Robinson, Earnie and Lee.

Lazio are going through a transition period and are close to doping a "Leeds United". Scudetto winners last season and 6th in Serie A last season, their best stars have moved on. Half of their first teamers and star players left over the summer, others are expected to move shortly too and coach Roberto Mancini moved onto Inter Milan, more are set to depart. The team are officially title SS Lazio - I can only assume the SS stands for Sinking Ship..

A rescue package and new investment was confirmed before the weekend, their first move was to promote youth coach Caso to first team coach and give a fantastic looking bench of him in his tracksuit bottoms and t-shirt and the bizarre looking ever assistant who was a Lionel Blair skinny bloke lookalike complete with Top Man three piece suit (yeah, I know it was probably expensive designer clobber) and frizzy hair.

Their side still had plenty of quality players for those who watch Football Italia or sit outside coffee shops reading Gazetta Della Sport. There was no sign of their best known player, the veteran Dino Baggio, but Sereni, their goalkeeper, was known. They had twin Italian international defenders, Oddo and Zauri, playing with Paolo Negro. Brazilian midfielder Cesar is in-demand and like a couple of his colleagues, is tipped to be elsewhere before their season starts, and their strikers of Muzzi and Pandev are renowned.

Lazio's new season doesn't commence for several weeks and in the first half, it was obvious that they were well behind City in terms of preparation. Cardiff were totally dominant and looked in excellent shape, they took a 1-0 lead into the interval and can only reflect that it should have been more.

Three times, City's strikeforce missed connecting with clear openings right in front of goal. Alan Lee should have scored in the opening 30 seconds as Earnie put a ball on a plate for him but he didn't eat it up. Before 5 minutes, it was Earnie's turn to miss out as Lee placed a perfect ball in front of him but he someone failed to get a touch from 6 yards and before 20 minutes,. the lively Lee beat a man and put a great low ball across goal that the stretching Earnshaw missed by a fraction.

Around that, it was constant City pressure. The number of crosses and balls across goal was a pleasing sight. Kav whipped in some excellent free-kicks but his corner kicks were as average as ever and only luck prevented City bodies getting on the end of things.

The Italians created next to nothing. Their first shot of the half went 20 yards wide and into Grange End netting just to the side of 25 or so Italians in the away end being regaled with "have you ever won a war?" and assorted other stares and insults from some of our Grange End beauties but had a good reception overall and certainly weren't being spat, puked and peed on as happened to us in Italy not so long ago. Margetson got out quickly to deny quick through balls but they perhaps should have scored on 25 minutes when a quick move saw Pandev turn Gabbidon inside the area but put his soft shot straight at Margetson when the goal was inviting.

On 27 minutes, City took a fully deserved lead with an excellent goal. Lee Bullock, quiet overall tonight, pinged a brilliant 40 yard ball to John Robinson on the wing who checked and whipped the perfect far ball curling cross which was met emphatically by ALAN LEE, his firm downward header easily beating Sereni at his near post in front of the Canton Stand.

Lee however should have doubled the lead just before half-time when a great right-sided move saw Rhys Weston knock a ball over Italian defenders to be met by Lee unchallenged from 10 yards whose header went back across goal and narrowly wide, the sort of opportunity Peter Thorne puts away with eyes closed.

A fantastic opening 45 minutes from City, easily their best pre-season football and, at last, something to give hope for the season ahead because everything before tonight had been low key and mediocre in the extreme.

HALF-TIME: CITY 1 LAZIO 0

After such a fantastic opening period, we should have known City couldn't keep that going but there were also mitigating factors. Changes were made - Warner was given 45 minutes in place of Margetson, Collins replaced an injured Danny Gabbidon who had looked imperious, the Italians had to show more than they had and it was also City's 4th game in 7 days meaning they must now be match-fit and physically-fit but it had to be tiring in the conditions. City also appeared a little more negative, Mr Kavanagh notably dropping slightly back and being closer to his back four than midfield colleagues. We were winning after all, all back then.

City's defence were looking more ponderous and vulnerable as the Italians were moving the ball at pace and committing more players forward and certainly not helping themselves by standing off their counter-parts and not always marking up which, worryingly, is surely the basics?

Lazio's equaliser demonstrated that perfectly. Credit to them for a passing move through the centre of the park and then three quick passes inside City's penalty area before PANDEV put an angled shot across Warner and inside his far post. Yet each Italian was able to pass without a challenge, Pandev was allowed to take the ball, have a couple of touches and turn before letting his shot go. Warner, being such a tall keeper, also looked a little slow getting down and you felt Margetson would have stopped it. Criminal defending all around.

After playing so well, City almost went behind seconds later as a speculative 25 yard dipping volley was tipped over by Tony Warner who, played himself out of the first team and restored memories of the "great" Peter Zois, with a poor display as he looked short on confidence to the extent that he was, at one stage, cheered for picking up a slow through ball.

However on 65 minutes, City re-took the lead with an Earnie cracker. With Harry Redknapp allegedly watching on in the Grandstand, the wee man started the move with a great back-hell under pressure on the touchline, Kav and Robbo exchanged passes before giving the ball back to EARNIE who raced on, turned a defender on the edge of the area and unleashed a shot across Sereni and in the opposite top corner. Earnie somersaulted, cart-wheeled and threw off his shirt in front of the dugout and got booked for his troubles by a referee who caused humour for the way he booked two Italians for their antics. He ran away from one player who protested to him then booked him when he saw him turn away, another he walked 40 yards across the pitch after an Italian before showing him the card.

The lead lasted only 4 minutes, another move down City's left side of defence without players marking or challenging but what a quality strike from Manfredi whose angled 25 yard drive again went across Warner who was unable to get down in time, the shot has power though, and had to watch it go across him and inside his far post.

From that moment, the game drifted a little. There was almost a repeat of the Santander brawl as John Robinson was badly fouled, reacted and players charged in but it stopped as soon as it started ... which was disappointing, I'm sure you'll agree. City, for reasons best known to Lennie, brought on Andy Campbell for John Robinson. Campbell playing left wing when Paul Parry was also on the bench. Bizarre. Earnie was lively but could not quite produce the breakthrough but was close was a superb turn and drive.

On 80 minutes, disaster, and a moment Tony Warner will want to forget. Racing out of goal, his sliced a clearance straight into the Grandstand just outside the penalty area. The ball was thrown to Muzzi who looked up and hit a speculative 25 yard shot. It was routine stuff that just needed to be helped over the bar. Warner, I think, tried to catch but I'm not sure what he was doing. All he succeeded in doing was tip the ball over his head and watch horrified as it fell behind him and roll into goal. I wonder if Neil Alexander was there and how must he have felt watching this?

So pre-season saw 0 wins, 2 draws and 4 defeats - the first time I can recall City not winning any pre-season game, when was the last time this happened? - and 12 goals conceded, most of them in a none-too-clever style. Pre-season is all about fitness but I wonder if confidence has been jolted. This game was very entertaining to watch and I really enjoyed it but let's hope the Cardiff City we see this weekend is the side we saw in the opening half and not the second half. The one thing I'm sure about is that whether manager, player or fan, we're all now totally fed up of pre-season friendlies.

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