Lazio’s opening four matchdays have produced 10 points and a clear message from Rino Gattuso: places are earned week by week, rather than protected by reputation. The coach has made competition inside the squad central to his early work at Formello, using a broad range of players while asking the group to remain focused amid the continuing protests aimed at president Claudio Lotito.
Key takeaways
- Gattuso has used 24 players across Serie A and Coppa Italia in the first part of the season.
- Only Danilo Cataldi and young player Przyborek have yet to feature among the available outfield players.
- Mandas, Provstgaard and Zaccagni have each completed 450 minutes so far.
- Gudmundsson needed just 28 minutes to make a decisive contribution, scoring at Udinese.
- Ratkov and Dia both appeared before leaving Lazio on loan, joining Levante and Rennes respectively.
A squad kept alive by competition
Gattuso has quickly become a reference point for a Lazio side seeking to restore ambition. His management has not created a fixed first XI: selections are being shaped by training, form and the requirements of each match. The underlying challenge, in his view, is for Lazio to overcome their own limitations before looking too far at the opposition.
The approach has helped keep the entire group involved. Most of the players approaching the final year of their contracts were moved on, while Cataldi, Matteo Cancellieri and Manuel Lazzari remain. Luca Pellegrini and Patric, meanwhile, have been left out of the club’s 25-man list by a board decision. Pellegrini did make a 27-minute Coppa Italia appearance before that exclusion.
Cataldi was named symbolically for the Milan match but has not played because of physical problems. His absence has stretched on, while Nicolo Rovella has also missed time after recording 204 minutes. Gattuso is due to address the media at 11.45 on Thursday, with his selection policy already a major theme of Lazio’s encouraging start.
The coach’s willingness to revise decisions has been presented as recognition for players’ work rather than uncertainty. Across the first fixtures, everybody has been given reason to believe that a strong week can lead to a chance on Sunday.
Minutes spread across every department
Ivan Provedel? No: Mandas has been ever-present alongside Provstgaard and Zaccagni, who was only replaced in stoppage time at Udinese. At the other end of the scale, Diogo Leite made his first appearance against Milan last Saturday, playing seven minutes on the right side of the defence after Josip Sutalo went off in the 83rd minute. Doekhi, who has played 360 minutes, was unavailable.
The left flank has already changed hands. Pedraza started with 169 minutes but lost his starting role by the third round, with Nuno Tavares now ahead after accumulating 255 minutes. On the right, Adam Marusic’s muscular injury limited him to 108 minutes. Lazzari has played 18 minutes from the bench, while Floriani Mussolini has moved ahead in the pecking order with 324 minutes.
In midfield, Taylor has been a constant with 433 minutes, while Frattesi has collected 316. Belahyane has returned to the central role and has reached 246 minutes amid Rovella’s absence and Cataldi’s fitness issues. Dele-Bashiru has played 123 minutes despite suffering a muscle problem.
The forward positions remain similarly open. Cancellieri, on 280 minutes, and Isaksen, on 158, continue to compete for opportunities. Pinamonti has played 96 minutes and is still waiting for his first Lazio goal, while Noslin led the line against Milan after appearing for 119 minutes overall. Gudmundsson’s swift impact at Udinese underlined the value of Lazio’s bench options.
Two players who have since departed were also part of Gattuso’s early rotation. Ratkov played 20 minutes in the Coppa Italia opener against Mantova before his loan to Levante, while Dia featured for 227 minutes, including league outings against Bologna and Genoa, before moving to Rennes. For the coach, their involvement remains part of the same principle: no player is treated as surplus while he can still help the side.
