The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, but then he to later acknowledge that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban 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.
Lazio became as messy during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
One individual kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
