The mood at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Surprising Return
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
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 much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
