The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Rumours that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or imploding.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived initially during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to determine the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
