The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized in their performances as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He was on last season with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there temporarily. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, 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, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the nature of the player's talent. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
