28 April 2002

'A disaster,' grunted the middle-aged man in the Rome bar. We had been sitting through a painful ninety minutes of televised football. Relieved that I had not spent the money on a trip to Bologna, I could only agree. The only good thing, he went on to his depressed friends, was that now Zaccheroni would certainly be out.

'Why on earth didn't he put on Lopez earlier?' was the question everyone was asking. Not least Lopez himself, to judge by the player's sour expression as he sat on a miserable bench with fellow-sufferers Mendieta and Inzaghi. It's hard to see Zaccheroni surviving next week's match with Inter, when no result is likely to be the right one. The lone Crespo was plainly struggling up front, and Bologna always looked the better side in this match. Despite the multiple injuries and dubious yellow-card decisions, the team have little to complain about.

After the match Cragnotti jr. blamed not just the manager but also the team. A shiver will have run down the spines of all Lazio fans as he specifically included Crespo and Nesta in his criticisms. He then went on to threaten that missing qualification for the Champion's League 'means that we must reconsider some of our plans'. Having previously promised to keep Lazio's two stars as well as the manager, it seems that the Cragnottis are preparing to go back on their word. While this isn't particularly surprising, it's still another blow for the fans.

With Roma still in the running for the scudetto, our faint hopes of Europe resting on defeat of Roma's rivals Inter, and the manager and transfer situation open wide, there's a lot of action left.

21 April 2002

Today's game was a roller coaster ride of emotion for the fans at the Stadio Olimpico. We arrived en masse – perhaps even the most disillusioned realising that the entertainment of the season is nearly over and deciding to turn out in support of their team. Arriving in the warm afternoon outside the familiar compound of the stadio, I felt a mixture of sadness and excitement. For millions of people, weekends are about to lose their focus. But what nailbiting stuff we have in store over the next fortnight. Today we plunged from flat despair to joyous delirium, via much frantic checking of other match scores and point-counting .

Today, Rome's official birthday, particularly huge cheers were awarded to the cheesy pre-match video sequence showing Lazio's eagle soaring past Rome's historic landmarks. The stadium was blue with scarves and flags, and the sun shone on an optimistic scene.

Sadly, the initial optimism lasted about as long as the sunshine. After Verona opened the scoring, the mood was black; the team seemed as bereft of ideas as ever. Then, despite the epic rainfall, a fantastic transformation to an attacking team with enough vision to bag five goals. Stam played a huge part, his tall figure popping up all over the pitch. By the time he hit the target, the Curva was clapping and chanting his praises, and the disgust at his unjust sending-off made itself felt all around the stadium.

Negative aspects of the tifosi still made themselves felt: a truly excessive amount of time dedicated to rude injunctions towards the unpopular Zaccheroni, while Liverani came in for the usual booing. It was reassuring though, to see the masses of the Distinti rounding on the racists to show their disapproval.

On the whole the mood was good. As news of the other matches came through, the good news outweighed the bad. When Ronaldo took Inter ahead the crowd reached a stage of ecstatic celebration. Deafening singing of Inter's praises filled the stadium. And when ex-Lazio idol Pavel Nedved scored for Roma's other rivals Juve, the Laziali brushed off their Nedved songsheet. Good too to see Baggio back and scoring so promptly.

The happiness faded slightly: Inter only managed a draw and we let in another three goals after leading 5-1 – leading to a tense final minute – but the sun is brighter in the Lazio sky. Still looks like this season too is going to go to the wire; there'll be plenty more unbearable tension to come.

It was disappointing to see the cruel Curva Nord responses to Liverani and Fiore in particular. Both have had an uneven season, but recently have demonstrated their commitment to the club with goals (Fiore) and words (Liverani, who last week stated that he wanted to be part of next season's new effort).

Anti-Zaccheroni chants were again a major feature of the match atmosphere, and in the newspapers even more names are being touted as possible replacements, from Mancini to Trappatoni.

So sad that the moments of Laziale ecstasy during Sunday afternoon ("Roma are losing 2-0 to Venezia!) came to so sudden an end. The fact that Roma's 'luck' was so disputable (a shocking dive by brattish Cassano, leading to big tv debates about sportsmanship) made it harder to swallow. Since rivals Inter and Juve are already complaining, there could be an enquiry into the match. On a disciplinary note, Nesta's booking last night means that he will miss the next match (Fiorentina). And it's to be hoped that no officials will watch too closely an incident that took place off the ball last night involving Couto and a Lecce player (and which Nesta also became involved in).

Nice to see the roughly comparable strengths of England and Italy tonight. A shame that Fowler's goal might lead to yet another case of a good defender suffering for an isolated mistake: Nesta has had far too much to bear lately. And from a Lazio viewpoint, there are mixed emotions to seeing Montella slotting more goals in. But it's impossible to begrudge him this moment of glory. He's made a very strong case for World Cup inclusion, and looking ahead we must hope his luck continues (maybe with a slight hiatus until the season is over!) Here's dreaming of the next Italy - England meeting. World Cup final, anyone?

The week's welcome announcement that Nesta is the squad's future was greeted with generous support and appreciation of the player, who seems to have emerged from a troubled fortnight as confident and strong as ever. Zaccheroni received no such appreciation, and after yet another show of dislocated passes and a chronic inability to get the ball forward, it's hard to see how he can hold on to his job into the next season.

It says a lot about this season that many of the cheers around the Stadio Olimpico were for Liverpool, thanking them for their ejection of Rome from Europe. And the hastily put-together merchandise and banners put the derby defeat behind them by proclaiming 'you're out'. Probably the day's biggest celebration for Lazio fans was the result of the evening's top-of-table clash, when Inter beat Roma 3-1.

The fans were singing and flag-waving, and the atmosphere was pleasantly positive. Add to Lazio's victory the fact that Roma only managed a draw and are off top spot, and you have a good Sunday for Lazio.

I was walking through a small park near the centre of Rome yesterday, when I heard a gaggle of teenage girls verbally assaulting a youth who was passing with a friend. 'Laziale,' they jeered, 'Laziale!' Everyone looked around. Obviously used to this kind of abuse, he maintained his dignity (such as is available to a Lazio fan) and responded merely by sticking his middle finger up at them as he continued on his way.