The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it has been hard to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this year. He was on last season with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were attempting to remain there temporarily. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
