The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it has been hard to determine if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Comeback
One individual continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to stay there a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed initially when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
