The mood at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
