The atmosphere at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this year. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He signed initially during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season 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
