What could have been a truly memorable season for Lazio was ultimately ruined by a couple of almighty collapses in big games.
Simone Inzaghi's men started the season superbly with nine wins from their opening eleven matches including becoming the first side to beat Juventus - and in their own backyard. There were whispers of a Scudetto challenge at that stage but it never quite materialised and it wasn't ever expected of the Biancocelesti.
The main goal became qualification for the Champions League and they had two possible avenues to achieve that from. One of them was to win the Europa League and Lazio virtually stormed into the quarter-finals with some excellent performances. They looked destined for the semis after taking a 5-2 aggregate lead in their second leg at Red Bull Salzburg but they somehow conspired to throw that away by conceding four times in a crazy 20 minutes.
Their European disappointment seemed like an anomaly to an otherwise consistently good season. Lazio arguably played the best football in Italy - only Napoli could conceivably challenge them for that mantle. There was no dispute about the whopping 89 goals they amassed in the league - making them the top scorers and it was a club record tally in the top flight. Despite all that, it all went wrong for them yet again when it mattered most. On the final day of the season, they simply needed to avoid defeat at home to Inter and they'd be in the Champions League but they fell apart again, surrendering a lead along with their seat at Europe's top table to the Nerazzurri.
There were still plenty of positives to counteract those big disappointments. Ciro Immobile raised his level again to finish the season as joint Capocannoniere with Mauro Icardi on 29 Serie A goals but the former Torino striker was also the leading scorer in the Europa League. His eventual tally was an incredible 41 goals and he also chipped in with his far amount of assists, making him the most effective player in Italian football. Speaking of assists, Luis Alberto surprised almost everyone by emerging as the best creator of goals in Serie A with 14. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic announced himself as one of the most complete and sought-after midfielders in Europe with his combination of raw power and finesse. Stefan de Vrij remained a solid presence at the back but he will be leaving for Inter.
That will be the biggest fear for Lazio this summer - losing their best players. Inzaghi has built an excellent team who play majestic football - it will be a real shame if missing out on the Champions League sees some of their stars depart.
