The mood at Lazio's home ground was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he admitted that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that he might quit were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio became as messy in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Presence
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He spent the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
