The mood at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Comeback
A single player kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed initially when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in 2022-23, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to work out the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
