The feeling at Lazio's home ground was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Return
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this season. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in 2022-23, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the nature of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
