The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or was there ever a thread holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the management had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Presence
One individual kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
