Gennaro Gattuso says Lazio can “surprise people” if they concentrate on one match at a time after their 3-0 victory at Juventus, a result that keeps them level with Inter at the top of Serie A on 19 points after seven rounds.
Lazio had not won in Turin since October 2017, but Oliver Provstgaard’s header, a goal from Gustav Isaksen and a late run from his own half by Fisayo Dele-Bashiru secured their biggest result of the season.
The victory also represents Lazio’s best start to a season, surpassing the opening run of their Scudetto-winning campaign in 1999/2000. They have now recorded six Serie A victories, alongside a dramatic 2-2 draw with Milan, despite injuries to Albert Gudmundsson, Matteo Cancellieri, Nicolo Rovella, Alessio Furlanetto and Adam Marusic.
“It is the first time I’ve won here since I started doing this profession,” Gattuso told DAZN Italia. “My staff and I propose ideas, but it’s the lads who put them into practice, so they deserve the credit.”
The former midfielder also praised the club’s work in difficult financial circumstances, saying: “We push hard in training, but we’ve created a real family unit here. The club also deserves compliments, as we had little money for the transfer market, but we went looking for good people who were determined, who wanted to come here at all costs.
“It took a while, we didn’t have a lot of money, but it’s easy for me to coach them.”
Gattuso warned his players against becoming distracted by their position in the table before their next fixture against Parma.
“We mustn’t look at the table right now,” he said. “We’ll enjoy this marvellous victory, but then heads down and back to work ahead of Parma. We’re not accustomed to being up there, and maybe we’re not ready to be either, but if we take it one game at a time, we can surprise people.”
He said Lazio’s mentality had been decisive and believed they had made progress in controlling matches. The visitors led 1-0 at half-time and caught Juventus offside six times, while their approach of overloading the opposition’s wingers helped Gattuso’s team tie Luciano Spalletti’s side in knots.
“The mentality and hunger were important,” Gattuso said. “We ran risks in the games against Milan and Venezia, but this time I think we took another step forward in terms of controlling the match.”
Lazio’s development is particularly notable after an early Coppa Italia exit and a difficult transfer window. Gattuso admitted the team still lacks the maturity to manage a lead comfortably.
“We are all or nothing, we don’t yet have the maturity to control a lead,” he said. “That is why we’ve always got to push with vehemence, as it’s what took us to this success.”
Provstgaard said the atmosphere and team spirit at Lazio’s Formello training ground were unlike anything he had experienced. Gattuso attributed that unity to clear standards, listening to his players and adapting to modern football.
“There are two or three things that I am intransigent on, but the rest I listen to the players,” he said. “The things I do stick to, they need to follow and that’s it. I think that is the secret.”
Lazio supporters have boycotted home matches for many months in protest at president Claudio Lotito, making the celebrations with the numerous ultras who travelled to Turin a rare occasion.
