The mood at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, before he publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio became as messy in their performances as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other initial five matches, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
One individual continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He joined originally when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the exact type of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
