Ancelotti Stays Calm as Lazio Close Gap
TURIN, April 2 (Reuters)(DS) - Juventus's 1-0 home defeat to second-placed Lazio on Saturday saw their lead over the Rome club slashed to just three points as the Serie A title race enters what promises to be an exciting final phase.
The defeat comes on the back of a 2-0 loss to AC Milan. Juve's nine-point lead, built on disciplined and consistent performances, has vanished along with the momentum that seemed to be pushing them towards their 26th league title.
Saturday's game, and the finale to the season, were transformed within the space of a minute when Juventus defender Ciro Ferrara was sent off in the 66th and Lazio's Diego Simeone headed the winner to keep alive his side's dream of a Serie A and Champions League double.
"I'm disappointed but not worried," said Juventus coach Carlo Ancelotti after the defeat. "We gave a positive performance and lost to a strong opponent. We don't need drama
now, we are still focused and we are looking ahead with calm. We have a fight on but we are still first."
In contrast to Juventus, Lazio, who were showing signs of self-destruction in early March, have hit peak form at the perfect moment. Saturday's win followed victory in the Rome
derby and Sven Goran Eriksson's side are showing a resolve that was crucially absent at this stage last season.
INTENSE SCHEDULE
"This team has great spirit, the kind of character that you can't buy at a supermarket," said Eriksson after Saturday's win. "The championship is much more open now. We have found the form we had before Christmas and that is so important. We want to win everything."
But that desire means Lazio face an intense schedule of vital games in the coming weeks. As well as their six remaining league games, the Rome club travel to Spain to play Valencia in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday and they have a two-legged Italian Cup final against Inter Milan to deal with.
But Lazio are well prepared for such a gruelling finale to the season and are able to call on players such as Alen Boksic and Marcelo Salas, neither of whom featured against Juventus, as they bid for glory on three fronts.
Juventus can concentrate entirely on the league campaign, having been eliminated from both the UEFA Cup and the Italian Cup.
DEMANDING FIXTURE
Ancelotti's side have just two home games remaining and they are both testing encounters against Fiorentina and Parma. Their more immediate itinerary takes them to Bologna on April 9 and to the San Siro a week later where they will face an Inter Milan side coached by Marcello Lippi, the man who brought so much success to Juventus in the 1990s.
Juventus's remaining two away games are at increasingly stubborn Verona and, on the final day of the season, what should be a more straightforward game against Perugia.
Lazio's most demanding fixture is away to Fiorentina on April 16 and their remaining two away games are at bottom club Piacenza and then Bologna.
Crucially Lazio have three relatively easy home games against Perugia, Venezia and Reggina, and on paper Eriksson's team look to have an excellent chance of winning their second Serie A title 26 years after their first. But this fascinating season has been full of twists and turns and Lazio need look no further than Juventus for a reminder that nothing can be taken for granted in Serie A.
