The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he admitted that the board had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Presence
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this season. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to determine the exact type of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
