The feeling at Lazio's home ground was far from happy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or did there exist a binding element holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
One individual kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He spent the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were attempting to stay there temporarily. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one 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 "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to work out the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
