The mood at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the management had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
A single player kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
