The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Matteo's Surprising Return
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
