A decimated Lazio put in a strong display in Belgium, able to grab a 1-1 draw at Club Brugge with Joaquin Correa, but will rue Patric’s avoidable penalty foul.
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A decimated Lazio put in a strong display in Belgium, able to grab a 1-1 draw at Club Brugge with Joaquin Correa, but will rue Patric’s avoidable penalty foul.
Follow all the action as it happens from this game and Juventus-Barcelona on the LIVEBLOG.
The Aquile had a nightmare build-up to their second Champions League group match, as 12 players didn’t make the trip due to injury or COVID-19 tests. Those included Ciro Immobile, Luis Alberto, Lucas Leiva, Thomas Strakosha and Manuel Lazzari, so it was a desperately reshuffled side that started in Belgium. Club Brugge had a full squad to choose from after their 2-1 win away to Zenit.
Joaquin Correa should’ve done better on the counter when springing the offside trap, but his finish was weak and easy for Simon Mignolet.
Correa learned from the mistake, as he did score a similar opportunity soon after, this time placing the left-foot finish into the far bottom corner after using his pace to break away from Simon Deli.
Felipe Caicedo’s header was deflected wide, while Charles De Katelaere fired a promising opportunity wide from 10 yards.
However, Patric stupidly wrapped both arms around Mats Rits as they were waiting for a set play to come in and it was inevitably caught by VAR. Hans Vanaken sent Pepe Reina the wrong way to convert the penalty.
Patric was also booked for that foul, so he was replaced at half-time by Andreas Pereira, moving Marco Parolo to centre-back.
Reina made a decisive rush off his line to get a touch to the Bonaventure angled drive, just deflecting it across the face of goal.
The veteran goalkeeper also got down very well to palm a Rits header round the base of the upright, while Eduard Sobol shinned off target when relatively undisturbed at the far post.
Lazio were visibly tired, but also threatened to win it late on with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic running on to a Francesco Acerbi ball over the top, as Simon Mignolet rushed off his line to parry with his chest.
Reina also had to be alert on Bonaventure, with Vormer flicking the rebound over from close range, and Andreas Pereira failed to finish a promising opportunity late on.
Club Brugge 1-1 Lazio
Correa 14 (L), Vanaken pen 42 (B)
Club Brugge: Mignolet; Clinton Mata, Kossounou, Deli, Sobol; Vormer, Vanaken, Rits; Diatta, Bonaventure (Krmencik 88), De Katelaere (Lang 84)
Lazio: Reina; Patric (Pereira 46), Hoedt, Acerbi; Marusic, Milinkovic-Savic, Parolo, Akpa Akpro, Fares (Muriqi 56); Caicedo (Czyz 68), Correa
Ref: Taylor (ENG)