The atmosphere at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to determine if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in 2022-23, almost all of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
