The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other initial five matches, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Matteo's Surprising Return
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined originally when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in 2022-23, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to identify the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
