The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Surprising Comeback
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of his skill set. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
