The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club became as messy in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this year. He was on the last one with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative 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
