Como Women fall 4-0 at home against Lazio. Stefano Sottili: “I want to see more pride and character from the girls”

The match between Como Women and Lazio was played at the Ferruccio Stadium in Seregno, valid for the eighth round return of the Serie A Women's Playoff Pool, sponsored by eBay. The match ended 4-0 in favour of Lazio, with a hat-trick by Le Bihan and a goal by Piemonte.

Stefano Sottili's girls set a good pace and manage possession, immediately posing a threat in the 4th minute when, following a corner, Rizzon heads a ball into a scramble, but it is saved on the line by Benoit. Como continue to push and in the 25th minute, Picchi tries a long-range shot after another corner-born action, but it sails over the crossbar. Despite the opportunities, it is Lazio who find the lead in the 27th minute: Benoit from the left feeds Le Bihan in the area, who heads it into the net, marking the 1-0 for the Biancocelesti. The home side do not give up and in the 35th minute, come close to equalising with Kerr, who after a nice exchange with Nischler shoots low in the area, but her shot is too weak and is caught by Cetinja. Lazio respond in the 39th minute with a combination between Le Bihan and Visentin, whose shot just misses the post to Gilardi's left. In the 42nd minute, the Biancocelesti double their lead: Piemonte is brought down in the area by Marcussen and from the penalty spot, Le Bihan nets the 2-0 for Lazio. At the end of the first half, Kramzar tries to reignite hope with a tricky 25-metre free kick, which Cetinja has to turn away for a corner.

In the second half, coach Sottili tries to inject new life into the attack by introducing Del Estal and Engman, but it’s Lazio who strike again. Just a few minutes after the restart, Le Bihan benefits from Gilardi off his line and with a lob from thirty metres, completes her personal hat-trick, making it 3-0. In the 70th minute, Lazio threaten again with Reyes hitting the post, following a punch clearance by Gilardi. Como Women still try to react, but their first chance comes in the 73rd minute with a well-taken free kick by Kramzar towards the near post, where Rizzon heads it over but fails to find the target. In the 76th minute, Lazio make it four: this time it is Piemonte scoring with a precise curving shot from the edge of the area, leaving Gilardi no chance. Towards the end, there is space for the young Ginevra D’Agostino, born in 2008, as she makes her Serie A debut with the Como Women shirt.

The match ends 0-4, with Como Women stuck at 32 points in the standings, in second place in the Playoff Pool, right behind Lazio, who lead the group. The team from Como will face Sampdoria on Saturday 3rd May at 18:00 in Genoa.

Post-match statements by Stefano Sottili

On the match and the incidents:“There is little to analyse. We started well, without conceding anything. We had the initial chance with Rizzon, from the corner kick, with that goal-line clearance. Then, as has happened to us in other matches, when we concede a goal — besides, the first goal came from a situation that should definitely have been managed better — we drop mentally and start conceding too much. From there on, the match was basically no longer in play, especially after the third goal. We came back onto the field with good intentions but weren’t even able to react with some pride, nor create opportunities to get back in it. It was a bad second half from us. In the first half, truth be told, we had more chances than Lazio. The two goals came from episodes: the penalty came from a play where Marcussen was going for the ball and Piemonte cleverly anticipated. The first goal, however, was the result of a situation that should have been managed better by all of us.”

The anger and disappointment for the result and the performance:“I'm very sorry, because I don’t like to make a bad impression (to put it mildly) like today: an athlete must be proud and cannot accept this type of performance and results. In this respect, I am really sorry and disappointed. I expect more, especially on a character level. It’s not something I can accept. For the upcoming matches, the girls will have to rely on pride. I don’t think anyone likes to lose in this manner, especially after the match against Sassuolo. I will do everything possible to make sure it doesn't happen again. During the week, I will evaluate who, in this aspect, will give me more guarantees.”

Scorecard

Como Women Formation: 22 Gilardi; 2 Marcussen (66’ Bergersen), 17 Sagen, 24 Rizzon, 3 Guagni (45’ Engman); 16 Karlernäs (45’ Del Estal), 20 Vaitukaitytė, 21 Picchi; 33 Kramzar, 7 Nischler (66’ Conc); 28 Kerr (81’ D’Agostino). Coach: Stefano Sottili 

Available: 4 Hansen, 12 Aprile, 13 Liva, 25 Marchiori, 36 Soggiu, 44 Bou I Salas. 

Lazio Formation: 1 Cetinja; 16 Castiello, 7 Connolly, 2 Baltrip-Reyes, 13 Oliviero (71’ Cafferata); 10 Benoit (71’ Mancuso), 6 Eriksen, 25 Goldoni; 11 Le Bihan (79’ Martinovic); 99 Visentin (71’ Simonetti), 18 Piemonte (85’ Scaramuzzi). Coach: Gianluca Grassadonia 

Available: 12 Karresmaa, 31 Pizzi, 35 Francolini, 36 Livignani.

Scorers: 27’, 42’ and 49’ Le Bihan (Lazio), 76’ Piemonte (Lazio)

Yellow cards: 47’ Connolly (Lazio), 55’ Oliviero (Lazio), 58’ Rizzon (Como Women), 65’ Benoit (Lazio)

Red cards: 0

MVP: Le Bihan

Referee and Assistants: Colaninno Filippo, Martinelli Stefano Vito, Spatrisano Diego and Saccà Benito