Gilardino says Parma's naive errors are costing points as losing run hits three
A battling first half gave way to two needless Lazio goals at the Olimpico, and the Parma coach says his young squad must find leadership fast before Wednesday's home game.
Parma lost 2-1 at Lazio on Friday, a third straight Serie A defeat that followed heavier losses to Inter and Torino, and head coach Alberto Gilardino says his side are undone by basic defensive mistakes rather than a lack of effort.
Kenneth Taylor opened the scoring after Diego Carlos redirected a Reda Belahyane pass straight into his path, and Lazio doubled their lead when the same defender turned a Nuno Tavares cross into his own net. Parma only got on the scoresheet in stoppage time, when Simone Lontani's cross bounced in off the far post past Christos Mandas — the first goal of Gilardino's short tenure since he replaced Carlos Cuesta.
Speaking to Sky Sport Italia, Gilardino said his team had taken a step forward in the first half compared with the loss at Torino, creating chances to take the lead before unravelling after the restart. He called the goals conceded "naïve errors" and said "fear must not be part of our vocabulary" as Parma try to pull clear of trouble, as reported by Football Italia.
A first-half platform undone after the break
The account from Gilardino points to a familiar pattern this season: Parma generating promising moments without the end product, then conceding cheaply once the game opens up. Several counter-attacking opportunities went begging before the interval, with Mandas making key saves to keep Lazio ahead on the scoreboard rather than the chances column.
That gap between territorial promise and the final result is the clearest marker of where Parma's problems lie. Creating transition opportunities against a settled opponent is one thing; converting them, or simply holding a lead in midfield once possession is lost, is another. Gilardino's own description of the second goal — where he said the team "should've done something more" — suggests a breakdown in the defensive transition rather than a tactical mismatch.
Diego Carlos's afternoon of self-inflicted damage
Diego Carlos was brought in for his experience, yet he was directly involved in both Lazio goals, first misplaying a pass into an opponent's path and then turning a cross beyond his own goalkeeper. Gilardino did not shield him from criticism, saying the senior centre-back was "below par" alongside midfielder Vincent Sierro, who started in place of the recovering Nicolás Bernabé.
That midfield selection was itself a piece of squad management: Gilardino said he rested Bernabé with Wednesday's fixture in mind, trusting Sierro to operate across multiple midfield positions in his place. It is a reminder that rotation decisions in a congested run of matches can expose a team just as much as tactical shape does, particularly when the deputy and the regular starter are not interchangeable in form.
The 4-2-4 shift that finally delivered a goal
Parma's late goal arrived after Gilardino pushed the team into a 4-2-4 shape in the closing stages, a structural change designed to commit more bodies forward once chasing the game. Lontani, deployed higher as part of that adjustment, scored the goal that gave Parma something tangible from the afternoon, and Gilardino singled him out afterwards for his ability to attack space in one-on-one situations and operate between the lines.
The coach framed Lontani's performance as evidence of potential rather than the finished article, saying the winger has considerable room to improve. That the goal came only after the team abandoned its base structure for a more attacking one is a detail worth sitting with: it suggests Parma may currently generate more from direct, committed positions than from patient build-up play.
Gilardino's broader message was about responsibility rather than tactics alone. He said the squad, which he described as very young, needs senior players like Diego Carlos and Sierro to transmit a clear identity even when their individual performances fall short, and called for the team to maintain what he termed a positive approach despite the run of results.
Parma have managed only one win in Serie A this season, a 2-1 victory over Genoa on 20 September, alongside one draw and six defeats across eight rounds, having scored just five goals in that span. Gilardino pointed to Wednesday's home fixture as an opportunity, calling it an important but not decisive match on their own turf.