Cremonese 1-2 Lazio: Noslin Inspires Second-Half Comeback

In the penultimate fixture of Serie A Matchday 35, Lazio turned the result upside-down in the second half to beat Cremonese by two goals to one at the Stadio Zini.

Marco Giampaolo opted for a 4-4-2 formation led by Antonio Sanarbia and Federico Bonazzoli. In the middle of the park, Youssef Maleh combined with Alberto Grassi, while Lazio youth product Romano Floriani Mussolini started on the right wing, with Alessio Zerbin on the opposite flank. Filippo Terracciano, Federico Baschitotto, Sebastiano Luperto, and Giuseppe Pezzela constituted the backline.

For his part, Maurizio Sarri revamped his attack, with Daniel Maldini spearheading the 4-3-3 lineup, supported by Gustav Isaksen and Mattia Zaccagni. In the middle of the park, Patric started between Toma Basic and Kenneth Taylor, while Adam Marusic and Nuno Tavares returned to the first XI, joining Alessio Romagnoli and Oliver Provstgaard at the back.

Lazio dominated possession in the early going, but failed to produce anything noteworthy throughout the first half. Their most dangerous chance came from a Zaccagni freekick that found Provstgaard at the back post, but the defender’s header evaded the goal.

On the other end of the pitch, Cremonese managed to score from their first shot on target. Bonazzoli tried his luck from long range. Edoardo Motta had a few bodies in front of him, but he was still expected to make the save. The young goalkeeper tried to block the shot with his foot, but ended up shipping in an utterly avoidable goal.

The opener gave the hosts some self-belief, and they became the more dangerous side. Provstgaard caused chaos in the box with an overhit pass that Patric couldn’t control. Zerbin suddenly found himself in front of goal, but couldn’t apply the finish, with his left-footed shot going high and wide.

After the break, Sarri made two immediate substitutions, bringing in Tijjani Noslin and Nicolo Rovella for Maldini and Patric. The changes paid dividends, with the Biancocelesti levelling the score eight minutes into the second half.

Tavares deserves the bulk of the credit as he picked up the ball inside his own box and launched a glorious run towards the other end of the pitch, leaving the likes of Grassi, Maleh, and Matteo Bianchetti in the dust. The Portuguese left-back found Noslin in the box, and the latter unselfishly laid it in Isaksen’s path. The Dane made no mistake in front of goal, placing the ball in the top corner.

After the equalizer, the two sides traded jabs, but Cremonese created the more dangerous chances. Motta was easily dispossessed by Bonazzali, but the later squandered the opportunity to punish the goalkeeper for his second mistake of the game, laying the ball in his path. The Lazio custodian then produced a couple of saves to deny the Tigers.

While the game appeared to be heading towards a draw, Noslin scored the injury-time winner. The Dutchman, who had moved to the left wing following Boulaye Dia’s introduction, played a give-and-go with his Senegalese teammates before curling one toward the far post. The shot was so well-executed that it beat the outstretched Emil Audero.

Lazio thus retained their 8th place in the table, reducing the gap with Atalanta to only four points and keeping their morale high ahead of next week’s all-important Coppa Italia final against Inter Milan.