The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him publicly stated that the club had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized in their performances as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
A single player kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this year. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to stay there for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
