The mood at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Rumours that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club became as messy in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
One individual remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this year. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, Lazio were attempting to remain there for another season. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to determine the exact type of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
