The Mapei Stadium fortress had yet to be breached before Lazio’s visit, but the visitors needed only the second minute to make their mark, as Kenneth Taylor fired home after Luca Lipani’s attempted clearance went straight into the Dutchman’s path.
The hosts reacted well, though, and restored parity a mere five minutes later after Josh Doig picked out Kristian Thorstvedt to apply a deflected strike past Christos Mandas.
That was the first goal which the Biancocelesti had conceded in the first half of a Serie A game this season, but they were back in front just six minutes later when Gustav Isaksen dispatched a brilliant first-time effort into the bottom corner from Mattia Zaccagni’s ball across the box.
It was a breathless start, and the vocal visiting fans saw their side net a third when Romano Floriani slid home at the far post from Taylor’s cross to score his first senior Lazio goal.
After four goals in the first 16 minutes, Sassuolo were reduced to 10 men following Thorstvedt’s studs-up challenge on Zaccagni, before Armand Lauriente had a second goal for the hosts ruled out for offside.
However, Sebastiano Esposito halved the deficit moments later, after dispatching a brilliant finish past Mandas.
But the goalscoring action in this madcap opening 45 minutes was not over yet, as Zaccagni headed past Stefano Turati from Isaken’s cross in first-half stoppage time.
After such a topsy-turvy first half, it would have been reasonable to expect the end-to-end nature of the game to taper off after the restart.
However, the drama continued when Simone Cinquegrano was penalised for handball in the box and, following a VAR review, referee Luca Zufferli pointed to the spot.
Zaccagni couldn’t accept the gift, though, as Turati comfortably kept out his tame spot-kick.
But Gennaro Gattuso’s side wouldn’t have to wait long for their fifth of the night, as Tijjani Noslin curled a fine right-footed finish into the bottom corner.
It looked like a sixth Lazio goal would arrive when they were awarded another penalty after Duje Caleta-Car pushed Isaksen down in the box. Although, a change of penalty takers didn’t change Lazio’s fortunes from 12 yards, as Turati easily kept out Davide Frattesi’s effort.
This mattered little in the context of the game, and Noslin scored the visitors’ sixth goal with a ferocious long-range right-footed strike that flew past Turati, giving Gattuso’s men a four-goal lead.
That capped off a fine night’s work for Lazio, who moved three points clear at the top of the table and laid down the gauntlet for Inter ahead of their match away at Venezia on Wednesday. Meanwhile, this defeat keeps Alberto Aquilani’s men in 14th, but the four-point gap to the bottom three could be eroded further in the next 24 hours.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio)
