The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
At least one man continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league for Lazio in 2022-23, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
