Taylor's Late Double Seals Thriller for Lazio

Picture this: a sun-soaked Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna still riding high from knocking out Roma in midweek Europa League glory, but nursing a squad full of walking wounded. Enter Lazio, fresh off knocking over Sassuolo and Milan, yet missing half their defence and midfield. Maurizio Sarri watching from the stands on ban duty – talk about drama before kick-off. As reported by Susy Campanale at Football Italia, this Serie A clash had all the makings of a proper scrap.

Injury Chaos and Early Sparks

Bologna came into it buzzing, but injuries to Jens Odgaard, Tommaso Pobega, Lukasz Skorupski, and Lorenzo De Silvestri left them threadbare at the back. Lazio? Their casualty ward was a revolving door: Mattia Zaccagni, Ivan Provedel, Danilo Cataldi, Toma Basic, Nicolò Rovella, and Samuel Gigot all sidelined, though Alessio Romagnoli was back in the fray.

The game kicked off with Adam Marusic terrorising down the right for Lazio, forcing Federico Ravaglia into a hasty dash. Daniel Maldini had a go with a volley, but it sailed wide – poor clearance or not, it wasn't his day yet. Then Bologna nearly exploded the net: Nikola Moro unleashed a rocket from distance on 21 minutes that Edoardo Motta could only watch smack the bar. Blimey, that had the Rossoblu faithful on their feet.

Lazio's woes deepened when Mario Gila limped off after 25 minutes – their injury curse striking again. Marusic fluffed another chance, blasting over when mates were queuing up, while Federico Bernardeschi blocked a Gustav Isaksen shot. It felt like both sides were tiptoeing on eggshells.

Penalty Pandemonium and Taylor Takes Over

The turning point? A classic cock-up. Santiago Castro nicked a dodgy backpass from Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, only for Motta to haul him down. Riccardo Orsolini stepped up for the spot-kick on 51 minutes – his big moment. But hang on, Motta, in just his third Serie A outing, pulled off a miracle save! The lad then stonewalled another Orsolini curler. Hero of the hour, that one.

Lazio smelled blood. Boulaye Dia fizzed a shot from range, it ricocheted kindly, and Kenneth Taylor – yeah, the Ajax loanee turned Biancocelesti starlet – swept it home at the near post. 1-0 on 65', and the away end erupted.

Matteo Cancellieri spurned two gilt-edged chances to make it comfy, but no worries. Dia linked with Noslin to tee up Taylor again on 72', who danced round Ravaglia and slotted into an empty net. Cheeky finish! And with eight minutes left, Taylor completed his brace, latching onto a Dia assist for 3-0. The kid was everywhere – two goals, pure class.

Bologna pushed late, Martin Vitik forcing a Motta fumble, but it was scrambled clear off the line. Phew. Final score: Lazio 3-0 Bologna (Taylor 65', 72', 82'). Saved pen: Orsolini 51'.

Leapfrog Joy Amid the Aches

This beauty catapults Lazio to eighth in Serie A, leapfrogging Bologna on the back of three straight wins. Taylor's double? Absolute belter, mate – the 22-year-old proving he's no flash in the pan. But those injuries... Gila joining the club, and Sarri must be tearing his hair out from the stands.

Bologna's Europa high crashed hard; that penalty miss will haunt Orsolini. Motta, though? From zero to hero, saving Lazio's bacon twice. In a league full of twists, this was Lazio saying, 'We're still in the fight.' Next up, who knows – but Taylor's got the pub talking. Fancy a pint to toast that?

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