The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic in their performances as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He completed last season with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to extend his stay temporarily. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
