The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, beating 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, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio during this campaign. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined initially during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in 2022-23, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to identify the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
