The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, before he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster without replacements.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was still trying to work out the nature of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
