The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or did there exist a binding element holding it together to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he publicly stated that the board had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, it has been hard to determine if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this season. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined originally during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
