The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, observers have struggled to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were attempting to extend his stay for another season. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
