The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized in their performances as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this season. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
