The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or did there exist a thread holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he to later acknowledge that the club had not mentioned the transfer ban they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this year. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo forced a rethink. They were unable to reduce their roster without replacements.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was still trying to work out the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
