Baroni: ‘Too much Bologna for Lazio to handle today’ | OneFootball

Marco Baroni admits there was ‘just too much Bologna’ for a decimated Lazio to handle, but he is ‘not worried’ by the 5-0 defeat. ‘The break comes at the best time for us.’

The Aquile knew this was a head-to-head for the European places, as the Rossoblu were only one point behind them going into the Stadio Dall’Ara.

That made the total capitulation all the more concerning, as the 5-0 result saw Bologna leapfrog Lazio in the standings and potentially even take fourth place from Juventus.

“I think we were in the game during the first half, but after the break they were running at twice the speed we could,” Baroni told DAZN.

“After the third goal, we just collapsed psychologically, there was too much Bologna for us to deal with today.

“It was the final game in a tough run of fixtures against perhaps the best opponents and we paid a heavy price for that.”

Baroni saw Lazio struggle with fatigue

BOLOGNA, ITALY – MARCH 16: Adam Marusic of SS Lazio competes for the ball with Riccardo Orsolini of Bologna during the Serie match between Bologna and Lazio at Stadio Renato Dall’Ara on March 16, 2025 in Bologna, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi – SS Lazio/Getty Images)

Lazio were only in action on Thursday evening for the Europa League Round of 16 tie, fighting back to hold Viktoria Plzen to a 1-1 draw, allowing them to qualify 3-2 on aggregate.

The fatigue is taking its toll, along with a growing injury list, as Nuno Tavares pulled out in the warm-up with a muscular issue and had to be replaced by not fully fit Adam Marusic.

“Marusic was not in good shape today, but he said he was ready to play if we really needed him. We’ve played a lot of matches, done a lot of travelling, but it must not be an alibi,” added Baroni.

“I know my players, there was just too much Bologna for us today. When you face an opponent that gets absolutely nothing wrong, it becomes tough.

“We were also not particularly lucky in some situations, such as Mattia Zaccagni hitting the inside of the upright. I can only justify the collapse with the strength of our opponents.”

It is not the first time this season that Lazio have crumbled to humiliating defeats in big games, as they also folded badly against Inter.

“We went into this game with a lot of problems. I had Castellanos on the bench, but he was not in any condition to play. I would prefer to lose one game than a player.”

Now there is the break for international duty and Baroni is hoping that they can reboot after some time to rest.

“I am not worried by this result, the break for international duty comes at the best time for us. We can do a bit of work on the training field at last.”

After the final whistle, the Lazio players went over to the section of the away supporters and the coach also spoke to the ultras, so what happened?

“I told the fans that the defeat was my fault. They supported us, they know that we are going into more big games, but we’ve got to get ourselves back on track, one game at a time,” concluded Baroni.