Lazio midfielder Marco Parolo gave a mention to Celtic in the aftermath of his side’s Coppa Italia defeat to Napoli last night.
The Rome outfit, who Neil Lennon’s men defeated twice in the space of a month, bowed out of the trophy they won last season after a 1-0 quarter-final defeat in Naples.
The loss ended Lazio’s remarkable domestic winning run that spanned 12 games.
Simone Inzaghi’s side had defeated Juventus twice in that time, as well as Napoli too. But they also succumbed to two 2-1 defeats against the Hoops in that period – something that still seems to linger in Parolo’s mind.
“The games against Celtic were similar to this one, we missed a lot of opportunities,” he told Football Italia after the game.
“This year we have been strong in the League and not in the cups. We are still developing.
“The triumph in the Coppa Italia has given us awareness.”
Defeat to Celtic still weighs on the mind of Parolo
Celtic’s Europa League group campaign really doesn’t get enough credit. Not only did we top the group ahead of our Champions League conquerors Cluj, we also finished ahead of two top teams from France and Italy.
If Lazio win their game in hand at home to tenth placed Verona, they would move into second in Serie A – just three points behind eight-in-a-row winners Juventus.
They are clearly one of the leading teams in Europe based on current from, but Rennes can’t be discounted either.
Despite a mid-season blip, the Brittany side are also third in the French top-flight, ahead of Moussa Dembele’s Lyon and Lille.
Lazio and Rennes could only muster ten points combined in Europa League Group E.
That’s three less than we managed from our first five matches – a remarkable feat for Lennon’s men.
It really isn’t talked about enough. So let’s keep the conversation going.
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