The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a thread holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he admitted that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that his departure was imminent were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
