The feeling at Lazio's home ground was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a binding element holding it together in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized in their performances as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Comeback
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
