The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals 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 Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, but then he admitted that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Speculation that his departure was imminent were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Return
At least one man remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this year. He completed the last one with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his parent club were attempting to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He joined originally when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
