Lazio rout Sassuolo 6-2 to go three points clear as Inter head to Venezia
Lazio's 6-2 win at Sassuolo was their fifth league win in a row and left them alone at the top of Serie A. Inter must now beat last-placed Venezia to draw level again, with Chivu planning heavy rotation before the Milan derby.
Lazio have taken the lead in the title race. Gennaro Gattuso’s side tore Sassuolo apart in Reggio Emilia on Tuesday night. They now sit alone in first place and put the pressure squarely on Inter.
The goals came early and often. Taylor scored in the 2nd minute and Isaksen in the 13th, according to Lazio’s official match sheet. Floriani Mussolini added a third in the 18th minute. Zaccagni struck in first-half stoppage time. Noslin then scored twice, in the 56th and 65th minutes. Thorstvedt, in the 7th minute, and Esposito, in the 43rd, replied for Sassuolo.
The hosts’ night unraveled in the 31st minute. Thorstvedt was sent off with a straight red card for a bad foul on Zaccagni. Sassuolo played the last hour with ten men. The margin could have been wider still. Goalkeeper Stefano Turati saved two second-half penalties, from Zaccagni in the 50th minute and from Frattesi in the 61st.
Sassuolo coach Alberto Aquilani said his side “can only apologize”. He added that the game was decided after the red card. Gattuso was more measured in victory. He said his team is “doing incredible things” but should not look at the table. He also recalled Lazio’s Coppa Italia exit against Mantova and warned that difficult moments will come.
Inter can no longer afford a slip at Venezia
Inter went into the round top of Serie A, with 23 goals scored and 10 conceded. Lazio’s win changes the arithmetic for Wednesday. Only a victory in Venice will restore a share of first place.
The opponent looks favorable on paper. Venezia are last in the table and arrive after a defeat at Genoa. Davide Nicola’s side will also face Inter in unfamiliar circumstances. Before Wednesday, no Serie A meeting between the two clubs had ever fallen on a weekday.
Inter have shown they can recover when games turn against them. They have taken 13 points from losing positions this season. That is more than any other team in Europe’s top five leagues. Seven of their 23 league goals have come in the last 15 minutes of matches.
Rotation plans meet a tighter title race
The timing is awkward for Chivu. He still plans to rotate heavily at Venezia, with the Milan derby only three days later. A changed lineup against the bottom side was a reasonable gamble while the top two were level. Now that Lazio sit alone in first, any dropped points would leave Inter chasing going into the derby.
Lazio’s run raises the stakes further. Five straight league wins show a rival that is not fading after a fast start. Inter’s late-goal habit may again prove useful if a rotated side struggles to break Venezia down.
The schedule offers little rest. After Venezia, Inter’s fixture list has the Milan derby on October 31, 2026. A Champions League away game at Feyenoord follows on November 3.
Mapei Stadium – Città del Tricolore: Vincenzo.togni, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
