The atmosphere at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he publicly stated that the board had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to determine if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He completed the last one with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed initially under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
