Lazio may set Serie A penalty record after 2-1 win over Fiorentina

As part of their chase for the Serie A title, Lazio defeated Fiorentina 2-1 at the Olympic Stadium.

The club scored its 15th penalty of the season via Ciro Immobile spot-kick following a controversial decision that went in their favour when Felipe Caicedo came together with Bartlomiej Dragowski.

Fiorentina had gone ahead through Franck Ribery’s magical solo effort, before Immobile restored parity. Luis Alberto’s strike in the second half was the winner that keeps Lazio within four points of Juventus.

Although there are a lot of penalties this season, Lazio is looking to be the team on the verge of equalling the record for most penalties in the top division. The club’s 15th penalty of the season is more than that of any club in the division.

With 15 already in 28 rounds of games, they could well break the Milan record with 18 spot-kicks in 1950-51.

With 133 penalties already awarded in the 2019-20 season, it is more than the 122 that was recorded throughout all of the 2018-19 campaign.

Genoa is behind Simone Inzaghi’s team with 13, while Lecce and Juventus have recorded ten each. Others are Roma with 9, Atalanta, Sampdoria, and InterMilan with eight each, followed by SPAL with that has 7, Fiorentina, Verona, Torino, and Cagliari have six each, Bologna – 5, Milan-4, Brescia and Sassuolo with three each, while Parma and Napoli have two each.

Only Udinese is the only top-flight club that is yet to record a single spot-kick this season.

In terms of teams that spot-kicks have been awarded against, Lecce, Brescia, and Torino are topping the table with nine each, while Juventus, Udinese, and Sassuolo have eight each going against them.

Lazio, which has been the highest beneficiary of spot-kick, has received fewer against them than any other club with just three.

 

Written by: Oladipupo Mojeedy