The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
