The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he publicly stated that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio 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. Throughout this period, it has been hard to determine if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The registration embargo forced a rethink. They were unable to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
