The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, but then he publicly stated that the club had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that his departure was imminent were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
At least one man continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this year. He spent the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there temporarily. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
