The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the management had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio became as messy in their performances as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Presence
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to reduce their roster without replacements.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- 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 Best Role
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
