The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
A single player continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were pushing for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. They were unable to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to identify the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
