The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a binding element holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him publicly stated that the board had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that he might quit were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
A single player continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team without replacements.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
