Serie A: Lazio strolls past Spezia, stays in top four

Lazio could have scored a fifth goal as well but Ciro Immobile missed a penalty in the first half.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (R) scored his 50th goal in Serie A against Spezia on Sunday. | Photo Credit: AP

Lazio ensured it stays in Serie A’s top four on Sunday after beating Spezia 4-0 in Rome.

Early goals from Mattia Zaccagni, Alessio Romagnoli and a brace in the second half from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic at the Stadio Olimpico put Lazio three points behind league leader Napoli in third.

Maurizio Sarri’s team is level on 17 points with AC Milan and second-placed Atalanta after making short work of Spezia, which is three points above the relegation zone, and claiming its third straight league win.

However Lazio will drop back down to fourth should Atalanta not lose to Fiorentina later on Sunday and Udinese wins at Verona on Monday.

“It could have been an ugly goal as far as I’m concerned, all that matters is that it went in,” said Romagnoli after scoring his first Lazio goal since his summer move from Milan with a well-taken volley.

“It was really great today because the team played really well... I’ve only just got here but the group has been working together for 14 months (on Sarri’s style of play) and I think you can see the results.”

Lazio’s dominance over their opponents was evident from kick-off, and it would have been ahead in the second minute had Ciro Immobile not blasted over a penalty he won just 39 seconds into the match -- the earliest ever in a Serie A match.

The host was soon in the lead however thanks to Zaccagni, who started and finished the move which ended with him tapping home in the 12th minute after exchanging passes with Felipe Anderson.

And 12 minutes later Romagnoli was kissing the Lazio badge under the Curva Nord end of the stadium where he went to watch the Roman team as a boy.

Milinkovic-Savic hit the bar with a header eight minutes before half-time but the Serbia midfielder rolled home from Danilo Cataldi’s pass to make it three just after the hour mark.

The 27-year-old then dinked in his 50th Serie A goal in stoppage time which gave the match a scoreline that reflected the balance of play.