Rome, Italy – April 17: SS Lazio’s Valentin Castellanos responds after missing a penalty in the UEFA Europa League 2024/25 quarter final second leg match between SS Lazio and FK Bodeau/Grimt at the Stadio Orispo, held in Italy on April 17, 2025. (Photo: Marco Rosi -SS Lazio/Getty Images)
Marco Baroni suggests why some surprising names stepped up to Lazio in his penalty shootout with Bodeau/Grimt. “After the Europa League elimination, “I don’t know what more I can ask the players.
Aquile knew there was a mountain to climb to overturn the deficit on the 2-0 first leg, but did it in the 93rd minute to force an extra time with Taty Castellanos, Tijjani Noslin.
Boulaye Dia nodded on the cross, but Andreas Helmersen put Bodo/Glimt back into his tie.
It was ultimately decided by a penalty shootout. There, the Norwegians face Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals as Room Chauna, Noslin and the visibly exhausted Castellanos did not convert.
“We’re in pain because our team played an extraordinary game in a great stadium with incredible energy, so we deserve to pass,” Baroni told Sky Sports Italia.
“We played well, created opportunities, were offensive, pushed high, stopped playing Bodro/Grimt and had many scoring opportunities. I’m sad how it ended, but I’m proud of the team. I can thank the fans and congratulate everyone, including those who got penalized.”
Lazio Penalty Taker surprised many people
Questions were inevitably raised about how he was chosen for these spot kicks, especially as Castellanos barely managed to stand in the extra time and had just returned from his injury and was not even expected to last 90 minutes.
“Obviously, once you reach the penalty, there are a lot of factors, including players ready to step up. Most of the people who took them were strikers, but we don’t want to be held responsible for them. They’re young players.
“We still have a season to finish in Serie A, so we need to give everyone a positive energy and confidence right now.”
Nuno Tavares stepped into the extra time with another muscular problem, distraught and shed tears through the fields.
“He was crying, I tried to comfort him, the stadium was chanting his name. He is an important player for us and is clearly experiencing difficult situations with injuries.
“That was a shame because we had to run out of replacements when we needed fresh legs.”
Ultimately, a 2-0 defeat in the first leg was decisive, with Baloni denounceing the artificial pitch that had created so many problems with opponents in the past.
“When I told the players, it was inevitable that when everyone said it was difficult to stay on our feet and control the ball.
“We created so many opportunities and worked hard. We don’t know what we can ask players any more tonight. The crowd recognized that, and they were on their feet.”
Lazio started the season incredibly well, winning the table for the Europa League, but European and domestic forms were stuttering for a while.
“There’s both psychological and physical pain because we absolutely gave everything we had. Now, we have to recharge the batteries right away. I told the young people in the last whistle that I’m proud of them, but the penalty is unpredictable.
“Before the game we told them we needed to do something extraordinary. The performance was just that,” Baloni concluded.
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