Welcome to Calcio Square, an email newsletter dedicated to Serie A and Italian football. Every Monday, I cover the biggest talking points from the weekend of action. Today's issues focuses on Lazio's unexpected rise.

Eliminating Napoli from the Coppa Italia wasn't enough. Lazio had to beat them again three days later to get people to notice.

Thursday's 3-1 win came with caveats: While Lazio were far from full strength, Napoli came to town with their B team. Antonio Conte's teams are also notorious underachievers in cup competitions. Beating one of his sides in the round of 16 isn't as shocking it probably should be.

But Sunday's 1-0 win — in Naples, no less — hit like panettone on Christmas Day. Lazio proved they're no fluke, limiting Napoli to a single shot on target in a game they knew they'd have to chase. They picked their moment to strike and held on long enough to deliver the fatal blow in the 79th minute.

Lazio have a won a lot without being truly extraordinary. They can play man-to-man and zonally. They can score five in a game and defend for long stretches. They adapt to whatever situation develops and manage the hell out of it.

Credit must go to head coach Marco Baroni, who's turned a once dysfunctional side into a true team. There's no three- or five-year plan unfolding here. Baroni is a 61-year-old journeyman manager, not a disciple of Pep Guardiola or a 30-something prodigy who promises rock and roll. Lazio's starting XI isn't even that young. It is, on average, one of the oldest in Serie A. But where others would see negatives, club president Claudio Lotito quite obviously sees positives. He sees the strength in the togetherness and collective spirit Baroni has harnessed with this ragtag group of veterans, youngsters, and loanees.

Lazio only spent €38 million last summer. While new arrival Tijjani Noslin looks like a star in the making, Baroni discovered even more potential in the squad he inherited. Forward Taty Castellanos, midfielder Nicolo Rovella, and defender Mario Gila are just three of the players who've leveled up in recent months.

All of this is to say the following: It's time to take Lazio seriously.

Key observations 👀

Developing storylines that deserve your attention.

• Juventus's unbeaten run is nothing special. It's strange to criticize a team that hasn't lost a single one of its 15 league matches. But a number of disappointing draws have made Juventus' record look better than it is. Add Sunday's 2-2 result to the list. Juve were trailing Bologna by two goals before deciding to pick up the ball and play. But why? Why do they have to wait? Juventus have a habit of playing it safe until they concede. Only then do they show what they're capable of. Juve dominated possession after going down 2-0 and ended up creating enough chances to erase the deficit but could've played with the same urgency from the start.
• Paulo Fonseca's Milan play scared. Fonseca has experimented with a back five to try and solve Milan's defensive issues, sacrificing the attacking approach he promised to deliver when he was hired. But it hasn't worked. Milan lost to Atalanta on Friday while playing with the handbrake on. If Milan can't manage a game from a winning or neutral position — and the way they defend set pieces tells me they can't — why not lean into what actually works? Fonseca has too many dangerous weapons in his arsenal to keep them all holstered. Play an open game, accept the risks that come with it, and chase results with a group of players who can do damage in transition.
• What was it worth firing Alberto Gilardino? Genoa had one shot on target in an utterly soulless 0-0 draw with Torino on Saturday. Patrick Vieira relies heavily on Andrea Pinamonti to score goals, and when he doesn't, Genoa simply don't win. That's not to say things were better under Alberto Gilardino. But they weren't worse, either. He only lost his job after a brutal run of fixtures against Juventus, Atalanta, Lazio, and Fiorentina. It felt unfair. The least Vieira could do is improve the football. He hasn't.

Parting shot 💥

Final remarks about the current state of Italian football.

More people would care about the Coppa Italia if it followed the same format as the FA Cup. Currently, Serie A teams enter the competition in the round of 32 and host the majority of the early tournament matches. We're denied any of the theater that comes with a top team playing an amateur side in a shoddy stadium. The Coppa Italia only includes teams from the top three tiers anyway.

The FA Cup is special because of the magic it creates. Just last week, fans of fifth-tier side Tamworth celebrated a third-round draw against Tottenham Hotspur, going as far as to mock Spurs for getting "battered everywhere they go." It's fun, and it also gives these lower-ranked sides a chance to rake in significant broadcast revenue.

There are few comparable Cinderella stories in the Coppa Italia. Alessandria's run to the semifinals in 2016 is the most recent example that comes to mind. They were in the third tier at that time and eventually lost to AC Milan. But they are the exception.

As it stands, Coppa Italia is a distraction for Serie A's best sides. It doesn't have to be that way.