The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he to later acknowledge that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He was on last season at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
