The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he could resign were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
At least one man remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He signed initially when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to determine the exact type of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
