The mood at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he admitted that the management had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Speculation that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
One individual continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there for another season. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Discovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to work out the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
