The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
One individual continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to extend his stay for another season. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
