The atmosphere at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, but then he publicly stated that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Rumours that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this season. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
