The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he admitted that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Return
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there for another season. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
