The atmosphere at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he admitted that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
One individual continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
