The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he to later acknowledge that the board had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club became as messy during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived initially during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
