The atmosphere at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the club had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Rumours that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they are improving or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
One individual continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He spent last season on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
