The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Return
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to identify the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
