The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the management had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic in their performances as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
