The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever a thread holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, before he admitted that the management had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if progress is being made or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were attempting to extend his stay a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in 2022-23, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
