Former Lazio, Inter and Roma striker Hernan Crespo believes that Gennaro Gattuso and the Biancocelesti deserve to sit at the top of the Serie A standings, labelling them the biggest 'surprise' of the 2026-27 season, and says that anybody who criticised their head coach while he was in charge of Italy 'will have to apologise'.
As things stand on Wednesday morning, Lazio sit alone at the top of the Serie A standings with an unbeaten record of eight victories and one draw from their first nine league fixtures of the season.
They claimed an emphatic 6-2 victory over 10-man Sassuolo on Tuesday night, which could have been an even greater scoreline given that Mattia Zaccagni and Davide Frattesi both missed penalties on the night.
REGGIO NELL'EMILIA, ITALY – OCTOBER 27: Kenneth Taylor of S.S. Lazio celebrates scoring his team's first goal with teammates during the Serie A match between US Sassuolo and SS Lazio at Mapei Stadium – Citta' del Tricolore on October 27, 2026 in Reggio nell'Emilia, Italy. (Photo by Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Getty Images)
Inter will have their right to respond on Wednesday evening when they take on bottom-of-the-table Venezia with the aim of catching up to Lazio on points.
Crespo, who represented both Lazio and Inter during his playing career, discussed the early title race and Gattuso's qualities as a head coach in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport on Wednesday morning.
While Gattuso insists that he is taking things one game at a time and that Lazio will suffer from 'vertigo' if they begin looking at the table too often, Crespo believes that the Biancocelesti are well within their rights to start dreaming about the Scudetto: "Why wouldn't they?"
03 Mar 2002: Hernan Crespo of Lazio celebrates scoring during the Serie A maych between Lazio and Venezia, played at the Stadio Olimpico, Rome. DIGITAL IMAGE Mandatory Credit: Grazia Neri/Getty Images
He continued: "They've created a special chemistry in that group, and I'm sure that it's all down to Rino. Gattuso knows how to win and, more important than anything, he has all the right qualities. Before talking about tactics and technique, you need that psychological aspect. If you don't have your head screwed on, you won't get anywhere.
"Rino's worked on the minds of his players, he's convinced them to do certain things, he's got them stimulated. When you have a guy like that guiding you, you bend over backwards to please him. His boys would dive into a fire for him."
Asked if he thinks Lazio deserve to be top of the Serie A standings at the moment, Crespo agreed: "It's well deserved. Eight wins and one draw: What more could they have done?
"Anyone who criticised Gattuso will now have to change their minds and apologise to him. But we know that football can be a strange world."
REGGIO NELL'EMILIA, ITALY – OCTOBER 27: SS Lazio head coach Gennaro Gattuso during the Serie A match between US Sassuolo and SS Lazio at Mapei Stadium – Citta' del Tricolore on October 27, 2026 in Reggio nell'Emilia, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi – SS Lazio/Getty Images)
Midway through the ninth round of Serie A fixtures, there are still four teams unbeaten at the top of the standings with Lazio, Inter, Roma and Milan. This is the first time in the division's history that four teams have gone this long without tasting defeat at the start of a new season.
In an entertaining round of fixtures on Tuesday night, which brought 18 goals across three matches, Roma also claimed victory with a 4-2 win over Cagliari.
Asked for his take on the Giallorossi, Crespo said: "Seeing Roma at the top of the standings was slightly more feasible over the summer in the sense that they had done well last season and have a great leader in Gasperini: They were destined to improve further.
"I'm surprised by Roma's athletic ability: They run and run, and they know what to do when they have the ball at their feet as well. Clear ideas and a lot of energy."
ROME, ITALY – OCTOBER 27: Emanuele Lulli of AS Roma celebrates scoring his team's first goal with teammate Gianluca Mancini during the Serie A match between AS Roma and Cagliari Calcio at Stadio Olimpico on October 27, 2026 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images)
So, between Lazio and Roma, which side looks 'strongest' at the moment?
"Lazio have obviously been the biggest surprise of the season, whilst Roma are building on the foundations they set last year. I'm not trying to be unbalanced, but I'll repeat what I said before: This Lazio team can fly."
