The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to determine if they're getting better or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Comeback
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to determine the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
