The mood at Lazio's home ground was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist a thread holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Presence
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined initially during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
