Lazio’s international break has given Rino Gattuso more than a chance to manage a reduced squad at Formello. It has offered a glimpse of a possible attacking partnership, with Tijjani Noslin and Andrea Pinamonti starting together in successive friendlies after largely sharing the centre-forward role during the league campaign.
A partnership tested during the break
Gattuso had used the pair separately as the central striker in his regular 4-3-3 once competitive fixtures began. In the two matches staged during the international window, however, circumstances led him towards a 4-2-3-1 and a different distribution of responsibilities.
Noslin played behind Pinamonti, whose job was to lead the line. The Dutchman arrived in the break after scoring in each of Lazio’s previous two Serie A matches, and the new arrangement has brought further encouraging signs.
- Against Arezzo, Lazio won 2-0. Pinamonti scored his first goal after an assist from Noslin, while Leite supplied the other goal.
- The following friendly against Juve Stabia ended 3-3. Noslin headed Lazio in front and Pinamonti later finished with a lob to make it 3-3.
- Zaccagni scored Lazio’s remaining goal against Juve Stabia.
- Pinamonti also missed a penalty when the score stood at 2-2 before finding the net later in the match.
Two friendlies do not settle a coach’s plans for the season, but they have shown that the forwards can coexist rather than merely rotate. Their differing qualities appear to offer Lazio another route in the final third.
Absences have shaped Gattuso’s selection
The switch was initially born from necessity. Gattuso was without 14 players across the two fixtures: seven away with their national teams and seven sidelined by injury. The shortage was especially acute in midfield, prompting the coach to use two holding players rather than his usual three-man unit.
The 4-2-3-1 is not entirely unfamiliar to Lazio. Gattuso alternated it with the 4-3-3 throughout pre-season, before adopting the latter consistently for official matches. Yet the present injury situation, together with uncertainty over the condition of the returning internationals, means the coach may have reason to revisit that earlier work.
Several players will report back to Formello close to the Monza fixture, and Gattuso could decide that some need a rest. Sutalo and Provstgaard are among those under particular observation after regularly featuring for Croatia and Denmark during the break.
Monza may bring changes at both ends
If Sutalo and Provstgaard are not immediately available, Doekhi and Leite could form Lazio’s central-defensive pairing against Monza. The selection further forward will also depend on fitness rather than theory alone.
- Cancellieri is not certain to recover in time for Monza.
- Isaksen has accumulated minutes with Denmark, but is still not considered fully fit.
- Noslin could therefore be used on the right in a 4-3-3, allowing Pinamonti to remain through the middle.
That option would keep the balance of a three-player midfield while placing the two attackers alongside each other rather than in the same vertical line. It may be the more natural starting point, given that a midfield pair can offer less control than a trio.
A useful alternative for the weeks ahead
Gattuso is unlikely to treat the 4-2-3-1 as an automatic replacement for his established system. The shape may be especially useful during matches, when Lazio need another presence around the penalty area without abandoning the idea of Noslin and Pinamonti sharing the pitch.
Still, the break has changed the terms of the discussion. Whether Noslin operates as a support forward in a 4-2-3-1 or starts wide in the 4-3-3, Lazio now have evidence that the Dutchman and Pinamonti can complement one another. As the squad returns from injury and international duty, that may become one of Gattuso’s more valuable choices in the next chapter of the league season.
