The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or did there exist a thread holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him admitted that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Speculation that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to determine if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
