The mood at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been any cohesion maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, 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 accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to work out the exact type of the player's talent. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
