The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he publicly stated that the board had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Presence
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He spent last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
