The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him publicly stated that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Rumours that he could resign were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Surprising Comeback
A single player kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this season. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
He signed in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
