The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, only for him to later acknowledge that the board had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Comeback
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He was on last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
