The 1997–98 season was Società Sportiva Lazio's 98th season in their existence and their tenth consecutive season in the top-flight of Italian football.
Season review Lazio appointed a new coach in Sven-Göran Eriksson, snatching the Swede from an almost readied contract with Blackburn Rovers. Ex-Sampdoria man Eriksson brought playmaking secondary striker Roberto Mancini with him. In addition, he signed Vladimir Jugović and Alen Bokšić from Juventus, with Bokšić embarking on a second tenure at Lazio. Matias Almeyda also arrived at the club from Spanish side Sevilla, while wing-back Giuseppe Pancaro, signed from Cagliari, also proved to be a key player.
The new players managed to form an effective unit that was involved in the battle for the title until the 28th round, when they lost 1–0 at home to Juventus in a game that turned the tide for Lazio.
The loss to Juventus led to a poor run of one point in six matches, dropping the team down to seventh. It was the club's worst league position for more than five years, but Eriksson was saved by the fact that the team had been seriously in the hunt for the scudetto (title) and reached the finals of both the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Cup. Lazio won the Coppa Italia but lost to Inter in the UEFA Cup final 3–0.
The 1997–98 season also saw the departure of club legend Giuseppe Signori, who failed to get on with Eriksson and was sold to Sampdoria as a long-overdue replacement for Mancini. Given the team's strong form at the time, his departure did not cause the same riots as happened when he was on the verge of being sold to Parma in 1995.(In Italian) "Signori to Parma". But the riot blocked the deal
1997-98 was a successful season for Pavel Nedvěd, the Czech winger scoring eleven goals and gaining confidence from Eriksson.
Players
Squad information Squad at end of season
Transfers In Pos. Name from Type FW Roberto Mancini Sampdoria MF Vladimir Jugović Juventus FW Alen Bokšić Juventus MF Matías Almeyda Sevilla FC DF Giovanni Lopez Vicenza Calcio DF Giuseppe Pancaro Cagliari Calcio GK Marco Ballotta A.C. Reggiana GK Flavio Roma Fiorenzuola loan ended MF Daniele Franceschini Castel di Sangro loan ended FW Marco Di Vaio A.S. Bari loan ended FW Alessandro Iannuzzi Vicenza Calcio loan ended Out Pos. Name To Type DF Mark Fish Bolton Wanderers FW Marco Di Vaio Salernitana GK Carlo Cudicini Castel di Sangro end of contract MF Marco Piovanelli Piacenza Calcio co-ownership FW Igor Protti S.S.C. Napoli loan GK Flavio Roma Foggia Calcio loan MF Roberto Baronio Vicenza Calcio loan MF Daniele Franceschini Foggia Calcio loan FW Alessandro Iannuzzi Lecce loan
Autumn In Pos. Name from Type Out Pos. Name To Type FW Renato Buso Piacenza Calcio FW Giuseppe Signori Sampdoria co-ownership
Competitions
Serie A
League table
Results summary
Results by round
Matches
Coppa Italia
Second round
Round of 16
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
UEFA Cup
First round
Second round
Third round
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Statistics Players statistics
References