The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic in their performances as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
At least one man continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
