The feeling at Lazio's home ground was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this year. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the specific characteristics 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 in the striker role. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
