Lazio v Bari: preview

Lazio play Bari at the weekend in the usual background wrapped up with tension and drama.
Yesterday fans in Formello booed Kolarov while leaving the training pitch and he immediately reacted silencing the fans fingering his nose. Then Radu came to the rescue trying to defend his team-mate from the insults of a supporter who was asking for more commitment. If anyone needed evidence that the Serbian can’t take it anymore at Lazio, you’re well served. It's strange to notice that it was exaclty after the game in Bari that Kolarov gestured against Lazio fans for the first time. His powerful shot and speed on the left flank though will be at Reja’s disposal on Sunday. Stephan Lichtsteiner has recovered from the ill feeling at his groin so that the coach will be keen on fielding a 3-5-2 formation. He firmly believes that the Swiss and Kolarov will break through Bari’s defence on the flanks. This is Lazio’s probable formation: Muslera; Biava, Dias, Radu; Lichtsteiner, Brocchi, Ledesma, Matuzalem, Kolarov; Rocchi, Floccari. Thus Stendardo and Mauri will start from the bench.
Suspended Zarate will join the fans in Curva Nord. The Irriducibili will stage a big choreography: every supporter in the Distinti Ovest and Nord will wear a blue shirt, while the Curva will be divided in three parts, two whites and one sky blue in the middle, just like the new home shirt. This will provide a fixed-effect show for the entire 90 minutes.
5,000 Bari supporters will make the trip to the Capital. At the beginning of the season, their team was on low odds to be relegated but Ventura proved the bookies wrong with his enthusiastic and sparkling football. His idea of 4-2-4 widely survived and provided a scare to Inter Milan in both legs (1-1 and 2-2), before seeing off Juventus at Stadio San Nicola. They could have won at AC Milan, Palermo and Sampdoria if it wasn’t for a series of controversial episodes. Between them, we find 5 missed penalties out of 9 (the last one was missed by former Celtic star Massimo Donati last Sunday). For these and other reasons, their achievements away from home have been quite poor: only 8 points in 14 games, that is only one win (at Chievo Verona in October) and 5 draws. That makes them third from bottom in the away form table (they just kept 2 clean sheets). The Galletti (cockerels) are now 12th, that is 12 points clear of Livorno, that is the relegation zone.
Before all this happened, American magnate Timothy Burton had set foot in Puglia in September in order to buy AS Bari from the longstanding Matarrese family. But, although signing a preliminary deal on August 26th, he just waned in the dark (just like what Albanian Taçi did with Bologna, or Soros with Roma).
Last week Ignacio Castillo scored the winner against Chievo (his first goal in a Bari shirt), ending a streak of 4 consecutive defeats and Gillet kept a clean sheet after 9 games. The Belgian goalkeeper is considered one of the best of the League, and the Bari defence was one of the best in the country before Christmas. Of their 34 goals, 19 were conceded after the break.
Giampiero Ventura will opt for a 4-4-2 formation: Gillet; Belmonte, A. Masiello, Bonucci, S. Masiello; Alvarez, Donati, Almiron (the star man v Chievo), Allegretti; Castillo, Barreto.