The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Presence
A single player continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He completed the last one with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster without replacements.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
