Gattuso Praises Lazio's Resilience After Udinese Victory

Gennaro Gattuso hailed Lazio’s steel and “alive” mentality after they turned a deficit into a 2-1 win over Udinese – then immediately set his sights on an emotional reunion with Milan.

Lazio trailed in the second half to Jesper Karlstrom’s strike, the Stadio Olimpico briefly stunned. The response was sharp and ruthless. Davide Frattesi dragged them level, Albert Gudmundsson completed the turnaround, and a fragile August suddenly felt a long way away.

This was the reaction Gattuso demanded after the Coppa Italia embarrassment against Mantova in August. That defeat had raised questions about his overhaul. Against Udinese, his players started to answer them.

“The mentality and the desire,” he told Sky Sport, via TuttoMercatoWeb, when asked what made the difference. “We dismantled everything compared to last year, when there was a master of the 4-3-3, and we are trying to do something different. The lads are doing things well. What we are trying to propose is not easy, but the team is alive.”

Alive, and clearly buying into a very different idea of football. Gattuso has not just tweaked the old structure, he has ripped it up, and nights like this are his proof of concept: a side that bends but doesn’t break, that can absorb a punch and hit back.

Backing from above

Gattuso did not keep the credit to himself. He pointed straight upstairs, to President Claudio Lotito and sporting director Angelo Fabiani, for a transfer campaign he admitted had looked unlikely on paper.

“With great difficulty, we made a transfer market that we didn't think we could make,” he said. “I have to thank both him and Fabiani; they deserve enormous credit for the players who arrived.”

The message was clear: the rebuild is a joint project. New ideas on the pitch, new faces in the dressing room, and a coach who feels the club has given him the tools to reshape a squad long associated with a very different system.

Milan on the horizon

Now comes the game that tugs at his heart as much as his competitive instinct. Milan. Twelve years of his life as a player. A club that helped define him.

“As a child, I remember the parade after the Steaua game with my father. For me, it was always an honour and a dream that lasted 12 years,” he recalled.

The affection is obvious. The conflict just as much. Gattuso knows what Milan means to him, but he also knows what a result against them would mean to this new Lazio, still learning to walk in his image.

“All the affection and joy cannot be forgotten,” he admitted, “but today I have another job and on Sunday I hope to take points from the team of my heart.”

The comeback against Udinese showed that Lazio will fight for him. San Siro will reveal just how far that fight can take them.