An Enrico Chiesa strike early in the second half helped Lazio come from behind to beat Wisla Krakow 2-1 to reach the UEFACup quarter-finals
The tie, which was rescheduled after the original fixture was called off last week due toa frozen pitch, began well for the home side with Marcin Kuzba putting the Poles ahead inside three minutes. That goal gave Wisla a 4-3 aggregate lead and put the onus on Lazio to attack.
The response from Roberto Mancini’s side was emphatic with Portuguese defender Fernando Couto levelling the scores on 20 minutes. Chances for both sides went begging but after the break Lazio began to take control and Chiesa was on hand on 54 minutes to volley the ball home. Thereafter the Italian side controlled the game and rarely looked like conceding.
After the match, Mancini said: ‘Wisla certainly started off well, but we turned outthe better. Lazio deserved to advance, we showed our class in the second half.’
‘I am only sad the pitch was such a (bad) condition. That is why I had to make several changes in the squad, I was afraid of injury,’ Mancini said of Krakow’s uneven playing surface.
Lazio will now face Besiktas for a place in the semi-finals.
