The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been a binding element maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the club had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster without replacements.
He signed initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
