2004–05 S.S. Lazio season

Lazio
2004–05 season
Chairman Claudio Lotito
Owner Claudio Lotito
Manager Domenico Caso
Giuseppe Papadopulo
Serie A 10th
Coppa Italia Round of 16
UEFA Cup Group stage
Supercoppa Italiana Runners-up
Top goalscorer Tommaso Rocchi (13)
Home colours

S.S. Lazio had a major backlash following its glorious decade. Capitalia sold the club to business man Claudio Lotito, who was initially forced to sell several key players, which led to a persistent battle to avoid relegation. The departure of manager Roberto Mancini was also severe, with Domenico Caso unable to follow in his footsteps.

Season

Lazio was just saved by Lotito during the summer, but before the season began Jaap Stam, Dejan Stanković, Stefano Fiore, Bernardo Corradi, Giuseppe Favalli, Siniša Mihajlović, Claudio López and several other players departed. The squad was completely depleted, with only Goran Pandev and former youth team player Paolo Di Canio, who returned aged 36. The funds were extremely tight, but on deadline day nine players were signed. Of those, only Tommaso Rocchi held top-class, but he proved to be a worth replacement for the departed strikers, and his 13 goals ensured Lazio stayed in Serie A.

Most of the other players signed proved to be flops, including Antonio and Emanuele Filippini, Anthony Šerić and several unknown Argentinian players.

Lazio suffered from a bad autumn, during which Caso eventually got fired, despite a popular 3-1 win over A.S. Roma, where Di Canio scored his first goal in a Rome derby since 1988, but sparked controversy with a Roman salute that was labelled as fascist. He then pulled fuel on the fire by declaring himself sharing fascist values when asked to defend himself. Following Caso's departure, Giuseppe Papadopulo was assigned the new coach, following intense protests following the appointment of Gigi Maifredi. The conclusion of the season was extremely uneventful, with some 13 teams involved in a scrap to avoid relegation, and a strong final couple of games ensured Lazio climbed to tenth, but the club was still only two points above the 18:th-placed team. Papadopulo was not given a new contract, as Lotito was impressed with the way Delio Rossi almost saved Atalanta from a hopeless situation.

Squad

Goalkeepers

Defenders

Midfielders

Attackers

Serie A

Games

Top Scorers

UEFA Cup

Qualifying

Group Stage