The atmosphere at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, before he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as behind the scenes, beating 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.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this season. He spent the last one with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to identify the specific characteristics of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
