The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had conceded a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the club had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Surprising Presence
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to reduce their roster without replacements.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of his skill set. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
