- Lazio have beaten their opponents in five straight pre-season games, including 6-0 at Flaminia, 6-3 against Avellino and a 2-1 victory at Ascoli.
- Mantova are coming up against Serie A quality and come into this game as underdogs.
- Mantova's top scorer in the last two seasons, Francesco Ruocco, has the ability to be a threat to a team of Lazio's quality.
Biancocelesti should be back in the groove
SS Lazio have shown some real bite in their five pre-season outings ahead of the Coppa Italia 2026-2027 tie and should get the better of Serie B outfit Mantova at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday. Gennaro Gattuso has stamped his authority on the club with a high-intensity, vertical approach in which his 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 is employed with fast transitions and pressing.
Lazio, who finished ninth in Serie A in 2025/26 with 54 points, can get ahead of the Biancorossi by going to town with the ball in the first half of the game. And if they do get the advantage, it will be very difficult for the visitors to come back. Lazio have enough attacking thrust in the shape of Tijjani Noslin, who contributed goals and assists last season, and Mattia Zaccagni, who is their most creative player in the final third, and they also have the added bite of Boulaye Dia and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru.
This will not be a game that suits the visitors at all and, although they have sharpened up well in summer friendlies, landing some impressive victories, they will need to be better than a Serie A team to avoid an upset here. Mantova were mid-table in Serie B in 2025/26 with 46 points, but the quality is not comparable to what they will face in Rome.
Mantova must play their part
Francesco Modesto's side will be better set up to be more conservative and it will be important that they remain compact and disciplined in their three-at-the-back shape. Leonardo Mancuso, Tommaso Marras and playmaker Rares Ilie can provide some punch around striker Francesco Ruocco, who has been a standout scorer in recent reports and can be a real threat on the break. Mantova and Lazio have met in official competition, with Lazio unbeaten in the two head-to-heads of the 1960s, winning 2-0 in 1963 and 1-0 in 1967. This is unlikely to be a thriller as that, with the Rome heat likely to test the tempo, so we're looking for a home win. Taking Lazio to win to nil, with both teams not to score at 73/100, is the better approach to take here as the odds of 31/100 on the hosts to win are ridiculously low, Mantova are 161/20 and the draw is 19/5.
