The mood at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been a thread holding it together to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he to later acknowledge that the board had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this season. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was still trying to identify the nature of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
