The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster without replacements.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, almost all of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the nature of his skill set. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
