The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had allowed ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or did there exist any cohesion keeping it intact in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the club had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if they are improving or self-destructing.
Matteo's Surprising Return
One individual kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this season. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to work out the nature of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
