The mood at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or did there exist a binding element keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he to later acknowledge that the club had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league with the club in 2022-23, all but one of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
