The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him publicly stated that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to ascertain if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to identify the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
